The Day the Earth Shook
by raysweetie
Summary: This is the fifth and final series of the Trio series. Joxer's daughter and Xena's daughter are now teens. The Gods are at war and the human are suffering for it.
1. Chapter 1

Title: The Day the Earth Shook

Authors: Susan Owens and Sandy Fiebranz

Timeline/Synopsis: AU. Ten years after the events chronicled in "Together, We Are a Family". This is the final story in the Trio Series.

Xena, Gabrielle, and Joxer have semi-retired from the road to allow Eve and Adora to attend school, although they still travel during the off-season to allow Eve to continue her training. Joxer teaches a music class at the local school. Gabrielle has opened a shop called "The Golden Scroll" that specializes in selling writing supplies.

Jace and Pierre have retired their dance troupe and opened a dance school in the same town. Jett has made parole and makes a living as a bounty hunter. He has a wife named Melody and a young child named Andreas, Andy for short. He also lives in the same town as his brothers.

Copyright: 2003

Disclaimers: We don't own them. The usual suspects own and profit from them instead.

Authors' notes: The names of the gods and goddesses for Gaul are a combination of Gaulish and Celtic names.

Part 1:

The tall brown haired girl sat on the stoop of the school waiting for her friend to get out of detention. She shook her head and sighed. It was the third time this week Adora had gotten detention and this time it was from her own father.

"Hey Eve, thanks for waiting for me!" Eve looked up to see Adora bouncing down the stairs. "Man, can you believe it? My own dad giving me detention..."

Eve stared at Adora. "Well, you should've been paying attention instead of passing notes to Ioannes."

"Oh, music is boring. Besides, it's not really important and Ioannes is so cute!" Adora exclaimed, dismissing her friend's scolding with a wave of her hand.

Eve shook her head and groaned. "Adora, I swear! You've got to learn to pay more attention during classes!"

Adora made a face. "I pay attention in school!"

"Yeah right," Eve snorted.

"Hey, I can prove it! Ask me anything," Adora said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Eve's blue eyes twinkled as she said, "Anything, huh? Okay, then. What are the music scales?"

"Eve!" Adora groaned, "anything but THAT!"

Eve giggled and placed her arm around her friend's shoulders. "You better be learning them soon. They're gonna be on the test."

"So, are you and Stephanos going out tonight?"

"No, and don't change the subject! I told Aunt Gabrielle that I'd watch Andy tonight. Jett and Melody want to go out."

"Why are you watching him instead of me?" Adora asked with a frown.

"Well, because you got grounded for that stunt you pulled at Jace's dance studio," Eve reminded her friend.

"How was I supposed to know that my stink bomb would actually work? It was kind of funny, though..." Adora's dark eyes shone as she thought about what had happened that day in the studio.

Eve's lips twitched but she managed to keep a straight face. "Uncle Jace and Uncle Joxer didn't think so," she pointed out to her friend.

"Well, they just don't have any sense of humor. I mean, for crying out loud! The way all those girls ran out screaming when it went off and then Uncle Jace tripped and fell over that long gown he was wearing... Come on, Eve! Even you thought it was hysterically funny!"

Before Eve could retort a response, a cheerful voice interrupted. "Hey! Adora!"

Adora turned around and smiled at the auburn-haired young man who came down the steps. "Hey! Hi, Ioannes."

Ioannes returned the smile as he stopped in front of Adora. "Can you go to the dance Saturday night, Adora?"

Adora's eyes sparkled as she gazed up at Ioannes. "Sure I can..."

"Oh no you can't!" Eve interrupted. "She's been grounded! AGAIN!"

Adora's face fell. "Aw Evie, come on! You can cover for me," she pleaded.

"No! Not this time! We've got to get home before both of us get into big trouble. You've got to help in the dance studio in case you've forgotten, Dorie."

Adora looked at Ioannes and then she winked at him. "I'll see you on Saturday!" She then got up and started walking towards home.

Eve rolled her eyes, shrugged her shoulders, and followed after her longtime friend.

The two girls arrived at Adora's house shortly after leaving school. Eve was staying at her friend's home until Xena came back from visiting a sick friend in Chin. Gabrielle looked up and pushed her hair away from her face as the girls walked inside. "Hello you two," she greeted them. She then turned to Adora and sighed. "I guess that you've had detention again, young lady."

"Yeah, Papa gave it to me. You'd think since I was his daughter he would cut me some slack! Mom, what's for supper? I'm starving!" Adora exclaimed.

"Adora, I've been busy all day in-between taking care of things at the store and having Andy under my feet all day long. There's some ham, cheese, olives, and bread left over from breakfast if you want to fix something for yourself."

"Okay Mom," Adora replied and went out into the kitchen to fix herself some supper.

"Hey, Aunt Gabrielle. I'll take Andy off your hands now," Eve went over and stooped down in front of a little boy with light blond hair and dark brown eyes. "Hey, Andy! Want to come and play with me?"

Andy looked up at her and grinned happily. "Oh boy! Come on, Eve! Let's go play soldiers. I can be the captain and you can be the head guard! Gonna do some 'nspections!"

"Okay, then. Let's go." Eve took Andy's hand and they went outside to play.

Gabrielle went into the kitchen and saw that Adora was eating. "As soon as you're finished with your supper, your Uncle Jace is expecting you," she reminded the teenager.

"Okay," Adora said and nodded in agreement. After finishing her meal, she went next door and walked inside the open doorway. "Uncle Jace, I'm here!" she called out.

"Hello Adora!" Jace said cheerfully as he came from another room dressed from head to toe in pink satin.

Adora's eyes nearly popped from her head at the sight of her uncle's outfit. "Uncle Jace, you can't be serious!" she exclaimed, wrinkling her nose in distaste.

Jace whirled around so his niece could get a full view of the outfit. "I was trying a new look. You don't like it?" he asked, his face falling.

Adora shook her head. "I'm sorry, Uncle Jace. Pink's just not your color."

"I told you so, my love," a deep voice interrupted the two before Jace could reply.

Jace turned around to face Pierre, who was smiling at him. "Okay, okay, Pierre. You made your point. I won't wear pink." Jace then turned to face Adora. "You can get started by sweeping the floor. I've got to change."

Adora and Pierre watched Jace leave. Pierre laughed a little. "He's a little strange, but I love him."

Adora rolled her eyes. "A little strange?"

Pierre chuckled as he gave Adora a broom. "All right, young lady. You heard your uncle. Start sweeping."

Adora grumbled under her breath, but began sweeping the room as she was told. 


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2:

Mount Olympus:

"Why did Daddykins summon all of us for this totally grody council anyway? I'm missing some majorly bitching waves off Crete because of this stupid meeting!" Aphrodite exclaimed grumpily, holding her hands up to inspect her manicure.

"Always thinking about yourself, aren't you? What a bimbo!" Discord sneered.

Aphrodite gasped. "I'll bimbo YOU, you skanky, no-class and fashionably clueless bi...!"

"Mom, knock it off!" Cupid broke in before Aphrodite could finish the insult.

Discord drew back and hissed wordlessly at the blonde Goddess, who stuck her tongue out at her defiantly and then laughed throatily.

"Oh, just let them zap each other off the planet. It might be fun to watch," Ares said mildly as he rubbed his fist against his leather vest and then inspected his fingernails.

"Dad, stop trying to help, because you stink at it!" Cupid growled. Psyche put a hand on the young God's shoulder to try and calm him down. Bliss fluttered next to his parents with a very upset expression on his face. The little godling didn't understand what was happening but he knew that something was wrong and it was bad - really bad.

"For once, I have to agree with Aphrodite. I've got a whole bunch of new inventory to sort out because of that clash in Sparta that you just had to start-" Hades pointed at Ares, who rolled his eyes, "and Strife's been slacking off again!" he growled.

"ENOUGH!" Hera roared as she appeared inside the Great Hall in a flash of bright white light. "Zeus will be arriving here shortly after he completes his consultation with The Fates."

"Oh, great! More words of doom and gloom from the Three Weird Ones," Apollo mumbled. He ran his long tanned fingers through his blond hair and sighed.

Hera fixed an icy glare on the God of Music and the Sun. "I said enough of this nonsense," she reminded Apollo softly, her eyebrow rising. Apollo saw the look on Hera's face and gulped nervously. He sat down on a marble bench and crossed his arms over his chest.

The silence grew uncomfortable as the entire Olympic pantheon awaited Zeus' arrival in the Great Hall. Ares, leaning up against a marble column nonchalantly, decided to amuse himself by making tiny fireballs and juggling them. Hades mumbled and fussed over a huge scroll that extended halfway across the floor once he opened it, making notes on the parchment while Artemis sharpened a spear and Aphrodite idly filed her nails. The rest of the Gods either paced back and forth or sat around waiting for Zeus to appear.

After quite a bit of time had passed by, the sound of footsteps could be heard echoing in the long corridor outside the Great Hall. Hermes stuck his head outside the door to see who was coming and then faced the others with a nod, silently confirming that it was Zeus and not a servant that approached. The rest rose to their feet as Zeus walked inside the Hall with a troubled expression on his face. He didn't say a word as he walked past the others and finally came to a halt in the middle of the floor.

It was a long time before Zeus raised his head and spoke, and when he did, he spoke in a slow and thoughtful voice. "As Hera informed all of you previously, I've been consulting with The Fates regarding some troubling signs that we have been seeing these past five mortal years or so. We are potentially facing our greatest threat, even worse than the Titans..."

Aphrodite rose to her feet and raised her hand to stop Zeus from continuing. "Whoa! Wait just a sec! What 'troubling signs' are you like talking about? Everything's been pretty radical up to now! What makes them say otherwise?"

Zeus' eyebrow rose as he turned to face the Goddess of Love. "My daughter, if you had been paying attention during council meetings or actually attending them instead of neglecting your duties and body-surfing somewhere, you wouldn't be asking me that question in the first place!"

Aphrodite rolled her eyes and made a rude noise. "Like whatever, already! So what did the Three Cryptic Chicks say, anyway?"

"You are all aware of the prophecy that there will be a great war between us and the Gods that rule over Gaul," Zeus continued, taking a moment to gaze at all assembled inside the Hall. The rest murmured in agreement. "The time draws near."

Several voices immediately rose up in protest and dismay, but one voice easily rose above the others. "That's fine with me. It's been getting too quiet around here for my liking anyway," Ares observed casually.

"Only YOU would think that something like this would be wonderful, Ares!" Athena snapped in response before Zeus could reply. "In case you've forgotten, brother, the prophecy states that if we are defeated, they will take over Mount Olympus, we will be exiled, and chaos will rule the mortal realm!"

Ares' dark eyes flashed dangerously. "Are you questioning my loyalty to the family, Athena?" he asked in a deadly soft voice.

"Need I remind you about Dahak, brother?" Athena replied, tossing her head back proudly.

"Why you...!" Ares snarled, raising his arm to throw a fireball at Athena. She did the same thing, but before either one could attack each other, Zeus lifted his hands up in opposite directions and fired huge blue-white bolts at the two of them. Both of them were knocked off their feet and they slammed into the walls with loud thuds. The two blinked several times as they tried to recover from their father's disciplinary zap.

"I HAVE HEARD ENOUGH OF THIS!" Zeus bellowed at the top of his lungs. His shout was powerful enough for several delicate decorative vases and urns to fall from their pedestals and come crashing to the floor, shattering into tiny shards.

Bliss immediately burst into loud tears and both of his parents shot dirty looks at Zeus. "Nice job, Grandpops!" Cupid shouted. He turned to Psyche, who was holding a very upset and frightened godling in her arms. "Shh. It's gonna be okay," he said soothingly to his son. He then turned back towards Zeus and glared at him angrily.

"My brother, what event could possibly have happened here or on Earth to make the prophecy come to light after all this time?" Hestia asked in her quiet and gentle voice.

Zeus put a hand to his forehead, closed his eyes, and sighed. He then raised his head and waved his arm. An image appeared before the assembled Gods and Goddesses of Joxer walking towards his and Gabrielle's home with a concerned expression on his face.

"STUDMUFFIN?" Aphrodite screeched in outrage. "What does my boy Joxer have to do with all of this?" she demanded, putting her hands on her hips.

"The mortal named Joxer is an extremely important thread in the tapestry of this prophecy," Zeus replied. The image then changed to Jace, Jett, Gabrielle, Xena, Eve, and finally to Adora. "Remember that both of these children were born under extremely unusual circumstances and have now come of age. This one-" he indicated Adora's image sweeping the floor, "-has exhibited great powers in the past, although she has not used them over the past ten mortal years."

Zeus gestured again and the image changed to that of Eve standing perfectly still, holding a long stick against her arm as Andy walked around her with a scowl on his face before he started giggling and they watched as Eve picked him up and whirled him around, laughing merrily. "This other one has no powers that either I or The Fates are aware of, yet she is the One."

The others kept silent as they took in everything that Zeus had told them. "I never thought that this would actually happen," Psyche said finally, shaking her head. She looked up at Cupid, who shook his head and sighed.

Zeus turned to gaze at Hephaestus, who nodded. "I have been working on weapons ever since the prophecy was first mentioned," the God of the Forge murmured.

"Good," Zeus replied with a sigh. "We will need everything that you've created - and much, much, more."

"I understand." Hephaestus bowed slightly and turned to gaze at Aphrodite, who looked very worried. He reached out for her hand and squeezed it gently. The Goddess returned the squeeze, but her distress only increased tenfold.

"There is one last thing before this council is dismissed," Zeus said.

Hera's head shot up at Zeus' words and her unusually light ice-blue eyes lit up in sudden fury. "I know exactly what you are thinking, my husband, and I forbid it! That - ABOMINATION-" she spat out - "has nothing to do with the affairs of Mount Olympus!"

Zeus' eyes hardened and then a shadow of weariness passed over his features. "Whether you like it or not, my wife, Hercules will be needed for this battle! So, put your petty jealousy aside for once and get used to the idea!" he snapped. He heard a wordless growl from the opposite side of the Hall and turned to face Ares, who scowled fiercely at him. "And as for you, Ares, you will need to work with him."

"WHAT?" Ares bellowed. "That goody-goody half-brother of mine? No way!"

Zeus' lips suddenly curled up into a half-smile. "Too bad, my son, but you have no choice in this. The Fates have decreed it so."

Ares snarled at his father and disappeared from the Hall in a flash of bright-white light.

Zeus then turned to gaze at Aphrodite, who raised a questioning eyebrow in return. "Aphrodite, you will just have to convince the two of them to cooperate - and you'll probably end up keeping them from trying to kill each other in the process."

Aphrodite rolled her eyes. "Wonderful. Baby-sitting duty," she sighed.

Zeus shook his head. "It will be much more than that, I'm afraid."

Aphrodite nodded. "I better go find Big Bro and Curly and give the two of them the scoop then, huh? Ciao for now!" She then raised her hand, snapped her fingers, and disappeared from the Hall in a rose-scented spray of pink and gold sparkles.

There was a long pause before Zeus said, "This council is now dismissed." Without another word, the rest of the Olympians left the Hall with the exception of Hera. Zeus gazed at the stiff form of his wife for a long time, watching as her fists opened and closed. Finally, with a sigh, he disappeared from the Hall with a lightning flash and a loud clap of thunder.

Gaul:

In the sky at the top of the highest mountain in Gaul, a great marble castle hidden from the sight of mortals' eyes stood. Normally, the castle was quiet as the Gods and Goddesses who lived inside it readily accepted the sacrifices and prayers of the mortals that resided in their lands.

Today, however, the castle buzzed with activity as the Gods and Goddesses gathered together. Taranis, God of Thunder, stood up and faced the others. The rest watched him curiously as he walked to the center of the room. He raised an eyebrow and began to speak. "The time finally has come for us to start our long-awaited war against the Gods of Mount Olympus. The Norns reported that they have started weaving the threads of their destruction into the tapestry." He waved his hand and the image of Adora scowling as she swept the floor appeared before the group.

"This girl that you see is Adora, Teutales' daughter. She was supposed to start this war for us, but because the wrong vessel was chosen for her coming to Earth, instead she is now the protector of this girl, named Eve, who is prophesied to be the messenger of peace." The image changed to that of Eve playing tag with Andy.

Taranis waved his hand again and the image disappeared. "Adora's powers have remained dormant for the past ten mortal years, but there are signs that they will manifest themselves hundredfold against us unless she is stopped." He turned to a young, tall, and very beautiful Goddess. "The girl must be destroyed before this happens, and I know that you are more than capable of doing this, Aer."

Aer smirked at Taranis' words. "I can do that right from here. One wave of my hand, and she will be reduced to ashes."

Taranis shook his head. "No. Adora must not be killed, for we need her in this war. What I want is this instead: corrupt her mind. The seed of rebellion is growing strong inside her already. All it needs is time for it to grow and flower," he said.

Aer considered Taranis' words for a moment. "And what better way to corrupt the mind than to appear to be someone that's completely harmless? I will go down to Earth tomorrow, disguise myself so I can pretend to be a new student at her school, and befriend her. With a little bit of time, I will be able to destroy the friendship between her and the girl named Eve."

Taranis nodded in approval. "I am pleased by this. You may leave, Aer."

Aer nodded and disappeared in a flash of hot-white light.

Taranis then turned to Teutales. "Prepare your armies for attack," he ordered.

Teutales bowed slightly. "I will need sacrifices to ensure a successful outcome." An evil smile appeared on the War God's face. "Many sacrifices. I want the rivers to run red with mortal blood."

Taranis returned the smile. "Then speak through your priests and priestesses so that you will get the sacrifices that you need to ensure our success." He turned to gaze at a huge and burly-looking God. "Kai, continue preparing weapons at your forge so that Teutales' armies will have all the weaponry needed."

Kai nodded and disappeared into the ether without a word. The rest of the Gods and Goddesses assembled cheered hoarsely and disappeared from the room with the exception of one Goddess - Teutales' mother, Brigandu. She stayed in the room for a long time by herself lost in her own thoughts before she too disappeared into the ether.


	3. Chapter 3

Part 3:

Joxer sighed loudly as he trudged home, not even realizing that some of his neighbors greeted him cheerfully as he walked past their homes. Instead, he continued to walk onwards with a troubled expression on his face. His flabbergasted neighbors watched him pass by and shook their heads.

Joxer's head lifted when he heard the sound of childish laughter up ahead and he smiled slightly as he watched Andy chasing after Eve in a game of tag. Obviously, his little nephew was 'it' and he was trying to tag the much taller and older girl.

Andy happened to notice Joxer approaching and he stopped in the middle of his playing. "Uncle Joxer!" he shouted happily and ran over to his uncle's outstretched arms, giggling merrily as Joxer picked him up, whirled him around once, and kissed him on the forehead before setting him back down onto the ground.

"Hi Andy," Joxer greeted his nephew with a smile, affectionately ruffling the boy's blond hair. He looked up as Eve walked over to the two with a smile on her face. "Hi Evie," he said, leaning over to give her a kiss on the cheek.

"Hi Uncle Joxer," Eve replied, returning the affectionate gesture. She sighed as she watched the merry expression fade away from Joxer's dark eyes and change over to worry. "Dorie's over at Jace and Pierre's place."

Joxer nodded. "Thanks, Evie." A smile that didn't reach his eyes appeared on his face. "Have fun with Andy but come inside when it gets dark, huh?" He gazed down at the little boy. "And aren't you still 'it'?" he reminded the five-year old.

"YEAH!" Andy shouted. He suddenly reached out and tagged Eve. "Now Evie is!" he giggled and raced down the street.

"Hey! I'll get you for that!" Eve laughed, shaking her fist in the air as she went after her charge.

Joxer chuckled as he watched Eve run after Andy and then he turned around and walked up the two stairs that led to the main sitting area of the house he and Gabrielle had bought. "Gabrielle," he said huskily as he walked inside.

Gabrielle smiled as she rose to her feet after carefully putting her quill aside. "Hi Joxer," she greeted her husband. She embraced him warmly, following it up with a deep kiss that he eagerly returned. She slowly withdrew from the kiss and gazed into Joxer's dark eyes and sighed at the worry she saw echoing in them. "Do you want something to eat?" she asked, gently caressing his cheek. "I haven't had anything yet, but Dorie ate before she went over to the studio."

Joxer nodded and together they walked out into the kitchen to have a light supper. Gabrielle silently watched as Joxer listlessly picked at his meal and finally had enough when he picked up an olive and stared at it with his right hand while he drummed the fingers of his left hand on the table. She reached out and put her hand over his. Joxer stopped drumming his fingers and his eyes slowly focused on Gabrielle. He sighed heavily and slowly put the olive back down on the plate.

"I guess things didn't go too well in class today, huh?" Gabrielle asked softly.

Joxer chuckled ruefully. "That's an understatement, Gabrielle." He took a drink of cool water from his mug and plunked it back on the table, some of the liquid sloshing over the side. He leaned back in his seat and shook his head.

"This is the third time this week Dorie's gotten detention, Gabrielle. Today, it was for passing notes to Ioannes. The other day, it was for putting glue on someone's seat... And then there was that business with the stink bomb in Jace's studio!" Joxer sighed again as he put his elbows on the table and cupped his face with his hands, his lips jutting out in an unhappy pout. "I just don't understand it, Gabrielle. Up until a few months ago, she was such a happy, go-lucky kid and now it's like we're dealing with a complete stranger! If you ask her to do something, she loses her temper. Now she's started playing tricks at school and she's gone absolutely boy-crazy..."

"Honey, Dorie was always boy-crazy," Gabrielle pointed out.

Joxer's lips curled up into a tiny smile. "That's true," he admitted. "But now..."

Gabrielle moved her chair so that she was sitting right next to Joxer. "It's teenage rebellion, Pookie. It's completely normal for someone her age to act out when she's frustrated. Both Lila and I pushed my parents at that age for a little while. Heck, Xena just went through the same thing with Eve a couple of years ago, remember? Didn't you feel like that when you were her age?"

Joxer's eyebrow rose. "I felt that way, but I sure didn't act on it. Not if I wanted to keep breathing," he said quietly.

Gabrielle nodded, knowing how he and his brothers grew up. "I know. Honestly, Joxer. It's just a phase she's going through," she said, trying to reassure him.

"I guess so," Joxer replied doubtfully.

Gabrielle searched Joxer's face carefully. "It's more than Dorie acting up that's bothering you," she said. Her eyes widened in alarm as she thought of something else. "You haven't seen her...?" she waved her arm vaguely.

"No, I haven't seen anything suddenly appear from thin air, Gabrielle," Joxer quickly reassured his wife. "It's just that..." he broke off, turning away from her gaze. "Never mind," he muttered.

"Never mind what, Joxer?" Gabrielle's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

Joxer didn't say anything for a long time, and when he did, his voice was very soft, almost a whisper. "I've messed up with so many things in the past, Gabrielle. What if I've..." He couldn't finish the rest of his thoughts, but passed his hand over his eyes.

Gabrielle suddenly reached out and grabbed both of his hands in hers, gripping them so tightly that it made him wince. Her green eyes flashed angrily as she stared into his eyes. "Joxer, I haven't heard you talk like this in a long time, and I'm not going to listen to you put yourself down now! You are not a failure as a parent!" she exclaimed sharply.

Joxer didn't say anything, but he didn't look convinced by Gabrielle's words either.

Gabrielle sighed and loosened her grip on Joxer's hands, but she didn't let them go. "Joxer, I'm serious. You're a good dad. You listen to Dorie when she wants to talk to you. You rarely raise your voice to her, and when you do have to punish her for something she's done, it's a fair punishment. You're not perfect, but who is?"

Joxer thought for a few moments, taking in everything that Gabrielle said. "You really think so?" he asked, gazing into her eyes intently.

Gabrielle smiled. "I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it." She reached out and ran her fingers through his hair, mussing it up even more than it already was.

Joxer laughed as he suddenly reached out and pulled Gabrielle from her chair and onto his lap, making her squeal in surprise. As she put her arms around his neck he said, "You're a good mom too, y'know." He kissed her gently.

"Thanks," Gabrielle replied, leaning her cheek against his. "Don't worry so much, Joxer, okay? It's just going to take some time," she murmured. The two were silent for a while before Gabrielle spoke up again. "I got a scroll from Xena today."

"You did?"

"Uh huh. She's on her way home. Her friend is feeling much better," Gabrielle told Joxer. "I've missed her a lot."

Joxer nodded. "I've missed her too. You really should've gone with her, Gabrielle."

"I know, but I think she wanted a little bit of time to herself," Gabrielle replied. Her eyes began twinkling with mischief. "It really will be good to have her back home, though. I can only have so many conversations about the latest fashions from Athens with Jace!" she giggled.

Joxer began laughing and hugged Gabrielle to him tightly as Eve and Andy entered the kitchen, both of them looking for something to eat.

"I hope you don't plan to kiss in front of you-know-who," Eve said teasingly to the couple as she took a plate for herself and placed some bread, ham, and cheese on it. She then took another plate and put some food on it for Andy, who sat down.

Andy rolled his eyes as Eve set the plate down in front of him. "Evie, I've seen kissing before! Daddy and Mommy do it all the time!" He watched as Joxer leaned over and kissed Gabrielle. "See?" he said as he pointed at the adults before starting his own meal.

Gabrielle returned the kiss, laughed, and got off Joxer's lap. "Hi, Eve. I've got some good news for you that I didn't get to tell you before you took Andy outside to play. Your mom's on her way home," she said as she got a drink of water for herself.

Eve's blue eyes lit up with happiness. "That's great, Aunt Gabrielle! I've missed Mom so much while she's been away. I wish I could've gone with her," she said wistfully. She hungrily bit into a piece of bread, following it up with a drink of water.

Andy rose to his feet and began jumping up and down, his meal temporarily forgotten. "Oh boy! Aunt Zena's coming back!" he exclaimed.

Eve shook her head and sighed. "Andy, my mom's name is Xena."

Andy sat back down and ate a piece of cheese. "That's what I said. Zena."

Eve giggled, reached out and affectionately mussed the boy's hair. "When is she coming home?"

"She said that she'll be here in a few days, but you can read it for yourself. The scroll's in the other room," Gabrielle told the teen.

"Thanks, Aunt Gabrielle." Eve put her plate aside, her meal finished. She looked over at Andy and saw that he had also finished his supper. "Okay. Well, I've got to get Andy ready for a nap. Aunt Melody was rather insistent about him having one when I saw her earlier."

The adults nodded as Eve took Andy's hand and left the room. The little boy looked up at her and made a face. "Aw Evie, do I have to take a nap?"

"Sorry kiddo, but your mom said you have to. Now come on and afterwards I'll treat you to some honey cake," Eve told the boy.

Andy let out a whoop and gave Eve a hug. Once she had him in the bed and tucked in, he smiled up at her.

"What is it, Andy?" Eve asked as she sat down next to the bed.

"Will you sing to me, Evie?"

"Sure. I'll sing you the song Mom always sung to me when I was little." Andy's dark eyes sparkled as Eve softly sang to him. She had just finished the last line when she saw that he had fallen asleep. She leaned down and kissed him gently on the nose, being careful not to wake him up. "You know kiddo, you've sure got your mom's looks and your dad's eyes... Wonder what else you got from your dad," she mused to herself as she rose to her feet and left the room to allow Andy to peacefully sleep. 


	4. Chapter 4

Part 4:

"Now, let's see... I think you can move that piece over there," a tall and pretty blonde-haired woman said as she put her hands on her hips and gazed around the room with a frown.

Her husband of six years stared at her, the muscles in his arms straining as he and another man held the heavy table up. "Melody, sweetheart, this is really heavy! Where do you want this thing?" Jett asked, grunting a little from the weight.

Melody looked at the two men. "Yeah! Wouldya make your mind up already? I'm not cut out for this kind of work. I don't mind keep myself in top condition, but moving furniture's not the way I like to do it!" Autolycus complained.

Jett glared at Autolycus. "Listen, thief..." he snarled.

Melody's eyebrow rose. "Jett, none of that please! I want you and Autolycus to get along."

Both men looked at her. "Sorry Melody, but could you hurry up? This is REALLY heavy!" Jett exclaimed.

Melody looked around the large room again. "Oh, okay. Place it over there in that corner. I think it will look good over there," she said, indicating the spot where she thought the table could be put.

"Thank the Gods!" Autolycus muttered as he and Jett carefully walked over to the spot that Melody had indicated.

"Coming through! Gotta get this place swept," Adora said, brandishing her broom before her. She immediately put it down and began sweeping.

"Dorie, can't you do that somewhere else? We've got to finish the set up for tonight's class."

Adora stopped her sweeping to look at Melody. "Sorry, Aunt Melody, but I've got to get the rest of this done so I can run home and do my homework."

Jett wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and gazed at her, his eyebrows rising up in surprise and then suspicion. "Since when do you like doing homework?" he asked.

"I don't, but maybe if I do it, Papa will let me go to the dance Saturday," Adora replied briskly.

"I wouldn't count on it, kiddo. Once Joxer's made up his mind, he can be very stubborn about changing it," Autolycus observed. "I should know!"

"I wasn't talking to you! I was talking to my uncle and aunt!" Adora said coldly.

Autolycus was taken aback by the teen's rude reply. "But I'm your uncle too!"

Adora began to sweep again, ignoring the adults. They all looked at each other. "Did you act like that when you were her age, Melody?" Jett asked.

"Of course I was mouthy at that age," Melody said. She then lowered her voice so that only the two men could hear her. "But then again, I didn't have the ability to..." she made a gesture with her hand.

"Joxer and Gabrielle better find out what's bugging her before it's too late," Autolycus mumbled, watching Adora finish sweeping the room and leave with a worried expression on his face.

Jett nodded in agreement. "Yeah. For once, I think you're right. Come on, let's get this finished up."

Melody smiled. "I'm going to go home and change. I'll see you when you get home," she said. She leaned over and gave Jett a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Okay. See you then," Jett replied. He smiled as he watched her leave and then turned back to the handsome thief. "C'mon, back to work, doofus-brain!"

Autolycus rolled his eyes, but he picked up a chair and walked into the next room with it. With the two of them working together, the room was set up for the evening's class in a short period of time. Having finished everything, both men sat down and admired their work. "The place looks great... Eh... Thanks for helping out," Jett said.

Autolycus nodded as he handed Jett a mug of water. "Well, you know me. Always there to help a friend... We are friends, right?" He took out a clean white handkerchief from his vest pocket and mopped his forehead with it.

Jett took a drink of water then gazed at Autolycus for a long time before he spoke. "Yeah, we're friends."

"Sheesh! Took you long enough to answer. I've seen people get their teeth pulled faster than that!" Autolycus exclaimed. He leaned back in his chair and stared at Jett. "Say... How did you and Melody meet, anyway? She doesn't exactly look like the type to get hauled off to the hoosegow."

Jett took another sip of his water. "We met ten years ago while I was still in prison - shortly after Jox and Gabrielle got married. Melody was part of this group of women who called themselves The Age of New Life. It's a group that tries to help reform prisoners."

Autolycus' eyebrow rose in surprise. "I've heard of them, but don't they usually try reforming relatively model prisoners - preferably model non-dangerous type prisoners?"

Jett cleared his throat and shifted in his chair. "Yeah, they do," he admitted. Autolycus watched in silent amusement as Jett's eyes softened as he continued speaking. "But there was something about Melody that I just had to get to know her better. Her voice... The way she moves... Her hair..."

"Yeah, I've noticed that about you three. You're all attached to blonds," Autolycus snickered.

Jett's eyes lost their soft focus and he scowled at the handsome thief. "Do you want to hear this or not?" he growled.

Autolycus gulped when he saw the scowl appear on the oldest triplet's face. "Yeah. Sorry 'bout that. Please go on," he muttered.

"I had to start becoming a good prisoner to at least get a shot at getting into the program. It took time, but I was lucky enough to manage to get in. I was told I would never be able to get parole whenever I became eligible for it because of my past, but Melody kept coming to see me anyway," Jett said quietly.

"I didn't understand the way I felt about Melody at first, but I figured out that I had fallen in love with her and I wanted to change - not just for her, but for me, too. Eventually, I was able to work outside the prison, but I never tried to escape - and believe me, I was really tempted to do it at first. Two years later, I was up for parole again, and this time I got it. I moved in with Melody, and two months after that, we were married." Jett leaned back in his chair and took another drink of water.

Autolycus grinned as he lifted his mug towards Jett's. "Here's to happy endings then," he said, and the two hit their mugs together in a toast.

Jace walked inside then and looked around the large room with a frown. "Hey, you two! I've got a class to teach tonight. Get off your butts and get to work!" he complained, putting his hands on his hips.

Both men stared at Jace for a moment, exchanged glances, put their mugs down next to the chairs they were sitting in, got up, and began walking towards him. Jace backed up, not liking the grins he saw on their faces. "Hey... What are you doing?" The two reached out and grabbed an arm. "Hey! Let go of me! Pierre, HELP!"

Pierre walked inside the room, quietly munching on an apple. He calmly watched as Jett and Autolycus took a struggling Jace outside and then he followed them. The two men finally came to a halt in front of the town fountain.

Jace's eyes grew wide when he realized what the two were planning on doing. "No! No! Jett! Autolycus! Please, guys! I've got a new outfit on! Water will ruin it," he pleaded as he tried to free himself from their combined grasp.

"Jace, I think you need to cool off because the heat's getting to you," Jett said as he and Autolycus pushed Jace into the water. As Jace surfaced from his forced dip, spitting and coughing up water, Jett turned around and placed his arm over Autolycus' shoulder. "Well, I've got to get home to Melody and change for tonight," he said.

Autolycus laughed and nodded. "There's a lovely lady just waiting for me to steal her heart at yon tavern," he replied, pointing towards it. "Maybe there's more than one," he continued as they walked away.

Jace stared at Jett and Autolycus, both of them laughing and joking as they walked away, his mouth open in shock. He then turned to Pierre, who was just finishing up his apple. "Why didn't you try to stop them?" he asked. "You just let them do this to me! Why?" Jace's bottom lip started trembling when Pierre didn't say anything in response. "Could you at least help me out of here?" he asked finally.

Pierre took a final bite of his apple and carelessly threw the core away. He gazed down at Jace with a distant look in his blue eyes - a look that made Jace's heart fall to the pit of his stomach. He slowly wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and his left eyebrow rose. "You're a big boy. You can get out of there yourself. I have things I need to get for tonight's class." With those words, Pierre turned around and walked off in the same direction Jett and Autolycus had gone earlier before turning into the street that the marketplace was located in.

Jace stared at Pierre's retreating form until the taller man turned towards the marketplace. Finally, he slowly rose to his feet after retrieving the curly wig he had worn and got out of the fountain. He walked towards his and Pierre's home with his head hung low, dripping wet and wiping away the tears that streamed from his eyes as he ignored the shocked stares of his neighbors. He stomped up the stairs, walked over the threshold, and slammed the door behind him.

Aer, keeping herself invisible to the mortals that were in the area smiled wickedly at the trouble that she had just created between Jace and Pierre. "Now that was fun!" she exclaimed, laughing heartily. Her eyes narrowed and she licked her lips in anticipation. "Ahhh... What fools these mortals are! Tomorrow's going to be even better!" she finished with a high-pitched giggle as she disappeared into the ether.


	5. Chapter 5

Part 5:

Hercules smiled as he lay back on the sand, idly staring up at the clouds drifting in the sky. He closed his eyes and sighed happily. He heard a shout, followed up with laughter and he lazily opened an eye. He rose to a sitting position and chuckled as Iolaus ran past him, White Dove chasing after her husband.

"Can't catch me! HA!" Iolaus threw over his shoulder and laughed as he ran out to the water's edge.

White Dove's face grew determined at his words and she increased her pace as she pursued Iolaus, who suddenly stopped running and held his arms out towards her. The two of them laughed as he picked her up in his arms and swung her around once. He put her down and splashed her.

Hercules started laughing as Iolaus and White Dove played in the water. His laughter stopped when a very upset looking Aphrodite suddenly appeared next to him in a shower of gold sparkles. "Aphrodite..." he said warningly, his blue eyes narrowing suspiciously. "What are you up to now?"

"Can it, Big Bro! We've got trouble in River City!" Aphrodite replied, stamping her foot in the soft sand and crossing her arms over her chest.

Hercules frowned as he rose to his feet and imitated his half-sister's posture. "What are you talking about?"

White Dove noticed that Hercules seemed to be talking to himself and she reached out and grabbed Iolaus' hands. Who's Hercules talking to, Iolaus? she signed, pointing at him.

"What..." Iolaus turned in the direction that his wife pointed in and his shoulders slumped and he rolled his eyes in exasperation when he saw Hercules appeared to be arguing with himself. "Oh, that's just great! We've got an uninvited guest of the Godly variety..." He cupped his hands to his mouth and yelled, "Herc! Who's there with you?"

"Whoops!" the Love Goddess rolled her eyes and snapped her fingers, making herself visible to Iolaus and White Dove. "Hiya, Curly!" she said with a wave.

"Aphrodite. What a surprise," Iolaus said flatly. He reached out for White Dove's hand and together they began walking towards the two already standing on the beach.

"Jeez! Like don't sound so glad to see me and all that!" Aphrodite said, rolling her eyes. "What burr got in your britches today?"

"Just stop it!" Hercules growled, putting a hand to his forehead for a moment and closing his eyes. "You said that there's trouble," he continued, turning back to gaze at Aphrodite.

Aphrodite nodded, her beautiful face set in an expression of absolute misery. "Yep. Totally big trouble!" she informed the three.

"So someone broke a vase in one of your temples or you misplaced something that you just have to have," Iolaus said, shrugging his shoulders.

"AUGH!" The Love Goddess threw her hands up in the air and stamped her foot on the sand. "You are like so totally off-base that it's not even funny, Shorty!" Aphrodite exclaimed, tossing her head back and shaking her curls so that they settled perfectly across her shoulders. "I'm totally serious, Big Bro!"

Hercules raised a hand before Iolaus could interrupt and start an argument. "I don't think that she's kidding, Iolaus. She wouldn't be bothering us if it wasn't."

Aphrodite rewarded Hercules with a gorgeous grin. "Thanks!" She then launched into a lengthy explanation, signing as she spoke for White Dove's benefit, about the prophesized war between the Greek and Gaul Gods and of the consequences of what would happen if the Gods of Mount Olympus were to be defeated. She then explained what had happened during the council meeting earlier. By the time she was finished with everything, after stopping to answer questions from Hercules, Iolaus, and White Dove, the sun was beginning to set. "...and that's the whole nasty-smelling scoop," she finished with a loud sigh. "We really need your help this time! We're like totally bumming if you won't help us out!"

Hercules was silent for a few minutes, thinking over everything that had been talked about. Iolaus and White Dove watched their friend's face curiously while Aphrodite anxiously wrung her hands. "Okay. I'm in," he said.

"RADICAL!" Aphrodite shouted, throwing herself into Hercules' arms for a hug.

"Okay, okay!" Hercules said with a slight smile as he returned the embrace.

"We'll help in any way we can," Iolaus said. White Dove nodded in agreement.

"Thanks, Curly." Aphrodite removed herself from Hercules' arms and put her hands on her hips. She bit her bottom lip and sighed. "There's just one last thing..."

Iolaus' eyes narrowed. "I don't like the sound of that."

"Neither do I," Hercules agreed. "What haven't you told us?"

"Well..." Aphrodite began reluctantly. Her blue eyes darted back and forth between the three, who were staring at her curiously. "Oh boy..."

"Just. Say. It," Hercules ground out through clenched teeth, his patience beginning to run short.

Aphrodite closed her eyes. "Daddy said you have to work with Tall, Dark, and Grouchy!" she exclaimed.

Iolaus' eyes widened. Uh oh... He started counting silently, waiting for the explosion from his best friend. He actually managed to get to three before it happened.

"WORK WITH ARES? NO WAY! FORGET IT!"

The aforementioned God of War suddenly appeared on the beach in a flash of blue-white light, scowling darkly at the group. "Trust me, this isn't exactly my idea either!" Ares snarled, his hands clenched into fists. He stalked over to the demigod, fuming.

"BOTH OF YOU KNOCK IT OFF!" Aphrodite yelled, pushing herself between the half-brothers. "For once, the two of you are gonna get along and work together for a change! For crying out loud, BLISS acts more grown-up than you two!" she snapped. "So like suck it up and deal, okay?" She finished it up with poking both of them hard in the chest, making them yelp. "Get it?"

Hercules and Ares continued to glare at each other for another minute before the demigod growled low in his throat. "All right!" he relented.

"Cool!" Aphrodite grinned gorgeously at Hercules and then turned to face Ares. "And you?"

Ares fumed silently, his handsome face turned up in a ferocious scowl. "All right, already! I'll do it, but I don't have to like it!" he exclaimed finally, rolling his eyes.

Aphrodite sighed. "Like fine! But one totally not cool move from either one of you, and I'll make both of you fall in love with rocks! Got it?"

"Got it," the two chorused grumpily, both of them wearing sour expressions on their faces.

"Groovy!" Aphrodite exclaimed with a beautiful smile. "Be back in a bit!" She then snapped her fingers and disappeared in a shower of pink sparkles.

Ares continued to glare at the three for a minute. Then, he rolled his eyes and with a sneer on his lips, he also disappeared from the beach.

Iolaus sighed. "Well, there went the vacation," he said.

Hercules nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I know. But you know something, Iolaus?"

"Yeah, Herc?" Iolaus asked as he slid his pants up his legs. "Thanks honey," he said to White Dove, who handed him his vest. She smiled in return as she knelt down to start packing up their possessions.

"I kind of wish Ares would've said no," the demigod murmured as he put his shirt on.

Iolaus' eyebrows rose. "Why?"

"I would've loved to see him fall head over heels for a rock."

Iolaus chuckled. "The only problem is, Herc, is that Aphrodite's so perturbed right now that who knows who or what else she'd decide to zap!"

"True," Hercules sighed as he bent down to help his friends pack up for their journey.


	6. Chapter 6

Part 6:

"Dinar for your thoughts," Jett said softly to Melody shortly after their dinner was served to them. "You look a little distracted."

Melody put her spoon down and looked up at her husband with a beautiful smile. "I was just thinking what a lucky woman I am. I've got a wonderful husband and a beautiful son... Jett, would you like to someday have another child?"

Jett's dark brown eyes opened wide at his wife's query. "Melody, are you trying to tell me you're going to have a baby?" he asked, his voice skipping up an octave.

Melody blushed prettily in the candlelight as she shook her head. "No. I was just asking."

"Are you kidding? I want lots and lots of kids - five boys and six girls."

Melody's eyebrow rose as she gazed at her husband. "Oh. Only five boys, Jett? Why not six or seven even?"

Jett's eyes started twinkling. "Well... If you want to have that many..."

Melody made a face. "No way!" she exclaimed.

Jett laughed, leaned over the table, and gave Melody a kiss. "If we do have another child and it's a girl, I'd like to name her after me if that's all right with you - Jetta."

Pierre banged on the locked door of his and Jace's bedroom. "Jace, please open the door!"

Jace lay on their bed and hugged a pillow against his chest, a tear occasionally falling down his cheek. "Go away, you brute!" he shouted.

"Jace baby, what's wrong? You can tell your Cuddle Buns."

"You know what's wrong, you beast! You let Jett and... Oh, I hate you!" Jace threw the pillow against the door and lay back down on the bed in a fetal position, choking back a sob.

"Jace, please open the door so we can talk!"

"Go away!" was the muffled reply.

Pierre heard another pillow hit the door with a loud thwack. "You've got a class to teach! The students will be coming in a couple of hours!" Pierre said desperately.

It suddenly got quiet inside their bedroom. Pierre could hear footsteps, then he heard the sound of the latch that locked the door being lifted, and a moment later, Jace slowly opened the door and stood before the threshold. His eyes were rimmed red from crying and his face was still a little wet from his earlier distress, but he stood in front of Pierre with a haughty expression on his face and equally haughty posture. "Ah, art beckons. The teaching must go on." He then stared at Pierre coldly. "I can no longer trust you. I want you to leave."

Pierre's heart fell. "Jace, you don't mean that. I love you!"

Jace walked over the threshold and into the hall. "Love me? Love me! Then why did you allow my brother and his friend to embarrass me like that?" he asked, glaring angrily at Pierre. His nostrils flared as he crossed his arms over his chest and tapped his booted foot on the floor as he impatiently waited for an explanation.

Pierre shook his head and frowned, trying to remember why he didn't try to stop Jett and Autolycus from dumping Jace in the town fountain, but his mind went fuzzy as he went over the events from earlier in the day. "I don't know why," he said finally.

Jace's dark eyes grew even colder at Pierre's response. "See? You have no answer. I want you out of my house now," he said in a deadly soft voice.

Aer giggled. She was having fun playing around with these two mortals. Suddenly, she felt another God's presence and she sighed. Rolling her eyes, she turned around and saw that it was Taranis.

"Leave those two mortals be. You're not here to play. You have work to do. Now take that hate spell off that mortal," Taranis ordered as he pointed at Jace.

Aer scowled but did as she was told. "You're nothing but an old fuddy-duddy!" she whined as she pointed her finger at Jace and a white-hot zap shot from her fingertip, hitting Jace squarely in the forehead.

"Just stick to what you're supposed to do," Taranis replied sternly then vanished.

Jace gasped as the invisible zap hit him, putting a hand to his forehead for a moment when a sharp pain shot through it. He blinked several times while the pain slowly subsided and then raised his head to gaze at Pierre, who returned the gaze with worry in his blue eyes.

"Oh Pierre, why are we fighting? I'm sorry," Jace apologized, reaching out to touch Pierre's cheek.

Pierre hung his head and sighed. "No, Jace. I'm sorry I didn't help you earlier. I don't know what came over me... I don't deserve you."

"That's not true." Jace drew Pierre into his embrace, leaning his head against Pierre's chest and closing his eyes. "I love you, Pierre."

Pierre's strong arms encircled his husband. "And I love you," he whispered in reply. He kissed Jace and hugged him tightly.

"Oh brother! I'm out of here before I puke from all this lovey-dovey mush!" Aer gagged as she rolled her eyes and disappeared.

"And I love both of you," a soft voice interrupted the pair.

Both men broke the embrace and turned around to see Adora standing in the doorway of the studio with a gentle smile on her face, broom still in her hand. "I've finished everything, Uncle Jace, Uncle Pierre."

Jace walked over to the doorway of the room where class was to be taught and looked around. He nodded in approval and turned back to face his niece. "You did a great job, Adora, and thank you. You better go home now, okay? I'll see you tonight for class."

Adora's smile disappeared as she handed the broom to her uncle. "Yeah. See you tonight. Bye," she mumbled.

Jace and Pierre watched the teenager leave for home and Jace sighed. "I wish we knew what was bothering her so much," he fretted. "I hate to see her like this, my love."

"It's just Dorie being a teenager, I suppose," Pierre said.

Jace shook his head. "That's part of it, but I don't think that's all that's bothering her. I hope that Joxer and Gabrielle can figure out whatever it is, though." He turned to Pierre and smiled. "Come. Let's have something to eat before the students arrive. I can't feel the rhythm on an empty stomach!"

"Good idea," Pierre agreed as he returned the smile. Together, they walked into their kitchen for supper.

Adora walked inside the door of her home and greeted her friend, who was sitting at the table reading the scroll that

Gabrielle had gotten earlier in the day. "Hi, Eve. What are you reading?" she asked curiously as she got her scroll from music class, sat down across from her friend and opened it up.

Eve looked up and smiled. "It's from Mom. She's coming home in a few days."

Adora scowled as she gazed down at her own scroll. "Oh, that's good. I've missed Aunt Xena," she said distractedly. She picked up a quill, dipped the end into an inkpot and started making notes on the parchment.

Eve's eyebrow rose in astonishment. "Are you actually doing your homework?"

Adora rolled her eyes. "Yes, I am. What makes you so surprised?"

Eve shook her head. "Sorry, Dorie. Didn't mean to get you upset," she mumbled. "It's just that..."

"Just what?"

"Uncle Joxer won't change his mind about grounding you and not letting you go to the dance because you did your homework," Eve replied.

"Maybe he won't, but maybe he will," Adora said as she made more notes on her parchment.

"I guess so," Eve said dubiously.

"I guess so what?" Joxer asked curiously as he walked into the sitting room with his lute.

"It's nothing important, Papa," Adora said softly before Eve could answer Joxer's question.

"All right," Joxer said with a nod. He put his lute down on a nearby chair and gazed at his daughter for a moment. "Eve, could you go and help your Aunt Gabrielle with putting the dishes away?" he asked.

Eve looked up and saw the worried expression in her uncle's eyes. "Sure. I'll be right back." She rose to her feet and walked into the kitchen.

Joxer watched as Adora sunk down in her seat. "I suppose I'm in trouble again," she grumbled sullenly. "What did I do this time?"

Joxer shook his head as he sat down next to his daughter. "No, Dorie. You're not in trouble," he said reassuringly. He gazed at his daughter for a few minutes before he said, "Neither one of us like having to punish you for something you've done, y'know."

Adora nodded, not daring to look at Joxer. "I know that."

"I want you to know that whenever you feel like you need to talk to someone about something that's bothering you that you can talk to your mom or me," Joxer continued, reaching out and putting a hand on Adora's shoulder. "Okay?"

Adora did look up then and saw the genuine worry and love in her father's face and she smiled slightly. "Okay," she agreed. She reached out and hugged Joxer fiercely. "I love you, Papa."

Joxer smiled as he returned the hug, following it up with a kiss on her cheek. "I love you too, Dorie." He broke the embrace but kept both hands on her shoulders as he gazed at her. "I'll let you finish your homework then, all right? I'll see you over at your uncle Jace's for class."

Adora nodded as she watched Joxer rise to his feet. "Okay."

Joxer smiled as he picked up his lute and walked over to the door's threshold and turned around. "Oh, and Dorie?" he said, raising his eyebrow.

Adora looked up from her scroll. "Yes, Papa?"

"Doing your homework is not going to change my mind over you being grounded and allowing you to go to the dance on Saturday. I'll see you in class shortly." With those words, Joxer stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind him.

Adora sighed loudly and scowled as she turned around and began scrawling more notes on her parchment.


	7. Chapter 7

Part 7:

Gaul:

The walls flickered eerily from the torch light inside the temple. A woman, dressed in a white robe, approached the altar and gazed at the many offerings left for Teutales. The priestess nodded once in approval and turned around when she heard the footsteps of someone entering the main area of the temple. A dark eyebrow rose in silent query as a man, also dressed in a white robe, approached her.

"All is in readiness," the man said, bowing slightly.

"Good. He is willing, then?" the woman asked softly.

"Yes, my lady. He came here of his own free will."

The priestess nodded. "Bring him here, then."

The acolyte bowed a second time and left the altar room. He returned a few minutes later with several people following him. As the others gathered around in a circle, a very handsome young man wearing a white loincloth approached the priestess, his eyes filled with fire.

The priestess looked at the young man for a long time, her dark brown eyes expressionless as she stared at him. Finally, she motioned to a couple of acolytes and they led the young man to a long stone table and had him lie down on it. A slow, steady chant arose in the temple - a prayer to the god they worshipped.

The priestess approached the stone table and slowly removed a long dagger from the folds of her robe. The young man's eyes were serene as he stared up at the blade and the elaborately jeweled hilt in the woman's hand. His lips spread across in a soft smile as he closed his eyes just as the dagger arched upward and the priestess swiftly plunged it into his heart, the blood from the wound spurting onto her pristine white robe.

Teutales lifted his head and smiled. He turned to Brigandu and said quietly, "It has begun."

Brigandu nodded. "I know, my son." She turned to gaze out the window and silently sighed. "I know."

Mount Olympus:

Zeus entered the Great Hall and sighed when he saw that Hera was still standing inside the room in the same position that she had been standing in when everyone else had left. He approached her slowly, walking around so that he faced her. He shook his head when he saw the expression on her face. "Hera... I know that..." he began slowly.

"I don't wish to talk about this now, Zeus!" Hera hissed. "You're right: Hercules will be needed for this," she admitted grudgingly, as if someone was pressing a sword against the base of her spine and forcing her to speak. "And that is the last I will say upon the subject."

Zeus stared at Hera for a long time before he nodded. "Very well," he said finally. "I..." he stopped whatever he was going to say next, his eyebrows rising.

Hera's ice-blue eyes widened momentarily. "I felt it too," she murmured before Zeus could say anything.

Husband and wife stared at each other for a few moments, then Zeus nodded and sighed. Without a word, the two left the Hall.

Aphrodite appeared before Hephaestus, who was working at his forge in a shower of pink and gold sparkles. He glanced up and his hammer stopped in mid-swing when he saw the expression on her lovely face. "Well, how did it go?" he asked softly, putting the hammer aside. His eyebrow rose as he gathered her into his arms. "Not too well, I gather, by the look on your face."

The Goddess let out an exasperated sigh. "Oh, Hephie! Those two like need to be totally dope-slapped..." she rolled her eyes. "But, they surprised me. They've actually agreed to work together." She chuckled sadly. "At least I'll have Curly to help run interference when it gets too grody!"

Hephaestus laughed softly at that. "We all have our jobs to do," he said, kissing her gently. He turned his head towards the direction of his forge and continued, "Speaking of jobs..."

"I know," Aphrodite murmured. "I'll let you get back to yours, sweet cheeks." She withdrew from his arms and put her hands on her shapely hips. She rewarded him with a beautiful smile, which he returned, and she disappeared in a spray of golden sparkles, leaving behind the scent of roses.

The smile slowly left Hephaestus' lips and he turned back to his forge to continue his work.


	8. Chapter 8

Part 8:

Joxer arrived inside the dance studio and sat down next to Pierre, who was sitting behind a pair of large drums. He started to tune his lute when Jace walked inside. "Hi Jace," he greeted his brother.

"Hi, Joxer. Thanks for stepping in tonight for Spiros on such short notice. I appreciate it," Jace replied.

Joxer grinned. "Hey, that's what brothers are for!" he said.

Jace's face fell for a split second before he returned the smile. "Yeah." He turned around and smiled as some of the students started filing inside the studio. "Good! I like it when my students are on time," he said approvingly.

Joxer noticed the quick change of expression on Jace's face when he said the word 'brothers', but he didn't say anything. He simply went back to tuning his lute.

Adora stood in front of the mirror staring intensely at herself. "Mom, do I really have to wear this? I look like a..." Her hands fell to her sides loosely.

Gabrielle walked inside Adora's bedroom and smiled at her daughter. "I think you look pretty in it."

"I know you do, but... It needs to lose this." Adora removed the sash. "There. That's better."

Gabrielle smiled and gave her a hug. "You better get over there."

"Mom, could you please get Papa to change his mind about Saturday? I really want to go to the dance."

"Dorie, you hate dancing!"

"I know, but I like Ioannes and he asked me."

Gabrielle chuckled. "I'll try, but don't count on it. Once Joxer makes up his mind, it's pretty difficult to get him to change it."

Adora gave Gabrielle another hug. "Thanks, Mom. If anyone can do it, you can."

"Okay. Now you better get going."

Adora smiled as she left. Eve was outside waiting for her friend. "Come on, Dorie. We better hurry. I hate being late. You know how Uncle Jace makes such a fuss when anyone is late."

"Yeah, I know! He has a major hissy fit!"

Both girls laughed as they entered the studio and the other students stared at them curiously, wondering what they were laughing at.

Jace approached them. "Well, it's nice... Adora, what did you do to your dress?"

"Don't have a cow, Uncle Jace! I just removed the sash."

Jace fanned himself. "Oh dear, you ruined... Oh, never mind!" He clapped his hands. "Okay, everyone get into your positions. Hurry now."

The girls moved to one side and the boys to the other side. At a signal from Jace, Joxer began playing a lively tune on the lute, Pierre keeping a steady rhythm on the drums as the students began to dance. Adora rolled her eyes as Jace had the students partner up. "Keep your heads up and SMILE! Nobody likes dancing with a gloomy person! Feel the rhythm as you move!" Jace said as he watched the students with an eagle eye.

"OW! Hey! Stop stepping on my foot!"

Adora looked at the young man. "Sorry," she mumbled.

Jace, having heard the yelp, hurried over. "What's going on here?"

The young man stared at him. "She keeps stepping on my foot!"

"I'm not doing it on purpose, Dorkface!"

"Watch your language, Adora," Jace said and shook his head slightly. "Please be more careful, all right?"

"I can't dance with this big ox, Uncle Jace!"

"Adora, Tedius is the best dancer here, so that's why I had you partner up with him. Why can't you just try better? Look at Eve. See how gracefully she moves?"

Adora's eyes seemed to glow for a moment and her nostrils flared out angrily. "Because I'm not Eve, and I don't care if Dorkface is the best dancer here! I won't dance with him! I'm out of here!" She turned around and stormed from the studio.

"Adora! You come back here! Do you hear me, young lady?"

Adora heard Jace, but she ignored him. She ran from the studio, not stopping until she was inside her house. Gabrielle looked up in surprise when the teen stormed inside the house. "Adora, honey, what's wrong? What are you doing home?" she asked, rising to her feet.

Adora ran to her, crying. "Oh Mom! I can't dance! I hate it! I don't want to go to that dance after all!"

Gabrielle held her as she cried. "It's okay, Dorie. Come on, let's have a talk."

She took Adora over to the table and they sat down. She gave her a drink and Adora took it. "Mom, I know I should be over in dance class, but I just can't dance like that."

"Honey, dancing isn't everything."

"Papa and Uncle Jace think it is."

"No they don't. Well, maybe Jace does."

Adora giggled at that. "Mom, what am I going to do?"

"I don't know, Dorie. Your father really wants you to learn how to dance."

"I can dance - just not Uncle Jace's way."

Joxer entered the house and saw the two of them talking. "Dorie…"

Adora pulled back her hair to have something to do before she answered him. "Uncle Jace partnered me with dork…uh, Tedius! Papa, he's so much bigger than me! I couldn't dance with him because I couldn't keep up with the way he moved! I kept stepping on his foot! I felt so stupid and clumsy…"

Joxer went over to his daughter and gently put his hands on her shoulders. "Jace told me to tell he's sorry for mismatching you and asked me to ask you if you would come back."

Adora stared at her father. "You're not mad at me?"

"No, Adora. I'm not mad. But if you're going to a dance someday - not Saturday - you really should learn to dance."

Adora hugged her father. "I love you, Papa! Okay, I'll go back." Adora ran from the house but stopped for a moment and glanced back inside. "Mom, I love you too." She then continued running over to the dance studio.

Gabrielle smiled in response and then she looked at Joxer. "Thanks."

"What for?"

"Not jumping on Adora."

"Why would I? I'm not the world's best dancer either," Joxer said, taking Gabrielle into his arms and kissing her gently.

"That's true when it comes to fast dancing, but when you slow dance…" Gabrielle purred into Joxer's ear. "You've got all the right moves."

Joxer blushed slightly and smiled at his wife. "I'll see you later, huh?" His dark eyes began twinkling as he withdrew from her. "Maybe I'll see something new that I can show you later."

Gabrielle returned the smile. "I'd like that." She smiled as she watched Joxer leave before she turned around and sat down at the table, where she picked up her quill and began writing.

Adora returned to the dance studio, her father walking inside the studio a few minutes later. Jace smiled at her and took her over to Ioannes. "I think he may be a better dance partner for you."

Adora smiled at Ioannes and he took her hand. Joxer sat down, picked up his lute, and the music began. As they danced, Adora whispered in Ioannes' ear, "I didn't know that you took lessons here."

Ioannes whispered back, "I just started today. Eve told me it might be the only way I'll get to dance with you for a while."

Adora smiled as she pressed her head against his chest.

Two hours later, Jace bustled around his students. "It's time to go, everybody. I'm seeing improvement from all of you, but I still want all of you to practice hard before next week's class."

Eve walked over to the door. "You coming, Adora?" she asked, moving to one side to allow the other students to pass by so they could go home.

Adora nodded. "In a sec, Evie. I want Papa to meet Ioannes."

"Uh Dorie, Ioannes is in his class too," Eve pointed out.

Adora shook her head. "I want him to meet him not as a student, but as a real good friend of mine."

Eve nodded in agreement. "Okay. See you later."

Adora watched her friend leave then took Ioannes over to her father, who was talking to Jace.

"So... What's bugging you, Jace?"

"Joxer, I have no idea what you are talking about."

Joxer crossed his arms over his chest. "When I said that's what brothers are for, you gave me a look."

Jace's eyes widened innocently. "What look?"

Joxer placed his hand on Jace's shoulder and sighed. "Jett did something, didn't he?"

Jace turned away. "Yes. He and that... man... Autolycus... tossed me into the town fountain!"

Adora and Ioannes waited patiently in silence until Joxer turned towards them. "Adora, you head for home. I'll be there in a while. Ioannes can walk you home."

"Okay, Pa..." Adora glanced at Ioannes and quickly corrected herself. "...Dad."

Joxer smiled at that. He leaned over and kissed Adora on top of the head. "You look after my daughter, Ioannes."

"I will, sir."

After the two left, Joxer turned back to Jace. "Come on, Jace. We need to go find Jett and Auto and have a talk. I'm pretty sure that they wouldn't have dumped you in the fountain unless you did or said something to provoke them in the first place. Am I right?" Joxer's eyebrows rose questioningly.

Jace's cheeks turned red as he glared at Joxer. "That's not the point and you know it!" Jace exclaimed sulkily, his rubbery lips twisting into a pout as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I'll talk to Jett, but not to that thief!" he mumbled, turning his head away from Joxer.

Joxer's eyebrows disappeared underneath his bangs. "Auto is a good friend. Why do you hate him so?"

"Hate him? I don't hate him. I'm above hate. I merely despise the man."

Joxer shook his head and sighed loudly. "Why? What do you have against him in the first place?"

Jace raised his head and stared at Joxer haughtily. "He's a thief! Do I need any other reason? Now let's go find Jett. He needs to apologize to me!"

It sounds like BOTH of you need to apologize to each other, Joxer thought to himself, rolling his eyes as he followed Jace outside. Once they reached Jett and Melody's home, Joxer noticed a candle in the window. "Jace, stop!" he exclaimed softly.

Jace turned and looked at him. "I know. I saw the candle. But tomorrow, Jett and I will talk."


	9. Chapter 9

Part 9:

Aer stood in front of the mirror and smiled, pleased at her reflection. She thought that she looked perfect in her outfit. She was dressed all in black: a leather bra, a very short skirt, thigh-high boots and leather gauntlets trimmed with silver. Her exposed bellybutton was pierced with a silver ring. "Oh yeah, do I look hot!" she gloated.

"If you're trying to get into the mortals' school looking like that, it won't work at all unless you're planning on having all those boys panting around you like dogs in heat," a soft voice interrupted her.

Aer turned around and saw that Abnoba was standing in the doorway of her bedroom suite, gazing at her with a frown on her face. "So what do you think I should wear instead?"

The blonde Goddess of the Hunt sighed as she moved inside the room. "First off, lose the dominatrix gear and the war-paint that you need to chisel off your face!" Aer snarled at Abnoba, but she merely shrugged her shoulders. "I'm serious. If you're going to pass as a Greek schoolgirl of sixteen mortal years or so, you have to look conservative so you don't attract unwanted attention and that means no pierced bellybutton and washboard abs to show off!"

Aer rolled her gray eyes heavenward. "Fine! So what should I wear?"

Abnoba snapped her fingers in Aer's direction. There was a bright flash of light, and when it cleared away, Aer gawked at herself in horror when she saw her reflection in the mirror. Her face was scrubbed clean of all makeup and she was clad in a simple blue dress with a very modest neckline and short sleeves.

Aer then looked down, lifted up the full long skirt slightly, and screeched wordlessly at the top of her lungs when she saw plain brown leather sandals on her feet and the blood-red nail polish on her toenails had disappeared. Her auburn colored hair was still left in a long braid that went down her back with a simple leather cord holding the braid in place. "UGH! This is SO not me! It's so... so... ARGH!" she howled.

Abnoba shook her head and sighed. "It's the only way that you'll be able to pass amongst the mortals without suspicion. The way you normally look is fine for a brothel, but not for a pure and innocent schoolgirl!" Her lips curled into a tiny smile and her light blue eyes twinkled with amusement. "Besides, it's actually not a bad look for you."

"Oh, just shut up!" Aer growled, her hands clenching into fists as she glared at herself in the mirror.

Abnoba turned around and walked down the hallway, her mocking laughter echoing back to the War Goddess. "I'll get you for this, I swear!" Aer vowed angrily.

Iolaus yawned loudly as he slid under the pelts of his and White Dove's bedroll. "Goodnight, Herc. It's sure gonna be a long day of traveling tomorrow once we turn inland," he observed as he made himself comfortable. He leaned over and kissed his already sleeping wife gently so as not to disturb her and settled back.

"'Night buddy," the demigod said with a grim nod as he sat in front of the slowly dying fire.

Iolaus turned towards his longtime friend, having heard the worried note in Hercules' voice and propped up his head with his hand. "Still thinking about all that Aphrodite told us?" he asked quietly.

Hercules nodded. "This is real big trouble, Iolaus - much, much worse than the Sovereign or Dahak and the God of Light," he said with a sigh.

"I know - and all of that was bad enough," the blond hunter agreed. His left eyebrow rose. "It's the Ares thing too, isn't it?" Hercules simply gave Iolaus a look in response. "Well, I don't blame you for feeling the way you do, but it sounds like there's no choice in it."

Hercules sighed. "No, there isn't." A sad half-smile appeared on the demigod's handsome features. "He stands for everything that I'm against..." His words trailed off as he turned away from the fire before rising to his feet.

"Where are you going?" Iolaus asked curiously.

"I need to take a walk and think things out. I'll be back in a little while," Hercules replied, moving away from their campsite.

"Okay. See you later, Herc," Iolaus said, carefully lowering himself back down onto the bedroll. He sighed as he slid underneath the pelts and snuggled up against White Dove.

Hercules walked along the beach for a while until he finally turned around to face the water. He watched in silence as the waves lapped along the shore and then sighed heavily. There was a flash of blue-white light next to him, and without turning around, the demigod said wearily, "Ares."

The God of War walked up to Hercules, coming to a halt as he faced his half-brother. His handsome face was turned up in a sneer as he stared at his half-brother. "Believe me, there's nothing better that I'd like to do than haul out a can of whoop-ass on you right now, but unfortunately, there's more important things to worry about."

Hercules rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "Like saving your pathetic butt from going into exile, Ares? Tell me another one."

A dark eyebrow rose. "Remember what happened when Sisyphus stole my powers temporarily, brother?" Ares asked in a low voice.

Hercules stared at the God of War silently, his blue eyes flashing angrily.

"Greece was in chaos because the mortals couldn't control their more - violent - urges. You were there when Iolaus was affected." Hercules' face never changed expression, but he nodded very slightly. "Whether you want to admit it or not, I'm needed here," Ares said.

"It's all about you, isn't it?" Hercules muttered then, averting his eyes away for a moment before turning back to glare at his half-brother. He watched in surprise as Ares' face changed to an expression of sheer exhaustion for a couple of moments before the disdainful sneer returned to his lips.

"Think whatever you want, Jerkules," Ares said quietly and disappeared into the ether in a flash of blue-white light.

It was a long time before the demigod turned around to join his friends at their camp to get some much-needed sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

Part 10:

Aer was hiding behind a tree as she watched Eve and Adora coming down the road towards school. 'Hmm,' she thought to herself. I've got to get Xena's spawn away from Adora so I can work on her. It shouldn't be too hard.' Aer waved her hand and a blue streak shot from her fingertips. "No one said I couldn't use my powers as long as the mortals don't see me," she said with a maniacal giggle.

Suddenly a branch caught Eve's skirt and ripped a big hole in it. "Oh no! That's my favorite skirt! Mom pricked her fingers so much making it for me and now it's ruined!"

Adora looked the ruined skirt over and shook her head. "Yeah, it sure is."

Eve groaned. "Great! Now I've got to go back and change into something else. I'll be late for class!"

"I'll go with you, Eve."

"Thanks for the offer, Dorie, but you've already got detention, and it would be dumb for both of us to be late. You go on ahead."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. I'll catch up with you in school."

"Okay then. See you in school."

Eve nodded as she ran back down the road. Aer watched as Adora turned around and headed back towards school. She waited until Adora was by the tree and then popped out in front of her.

"Hey!" Aer stepping out from behind the tree startled Adora and she dropped the small bag she used to carry her scrolls and they scattered all over the ground.

Aer bent down to help Adora pick up her things. "Sorry. Did I scare you?"

"Yeah...Uh no, not at all. Thanks for your help." Adora turned around and started walking again towards school.

Aer had to walk quickly to keep up with her. "Why is she walking so fast?" she asked herself. "Hey, slow down!" she called out, raising her voice.

Adora stopped and looked at Aer. "I'm going to be late. If you want to walk with me, then you better walk faster." She then turned and hurried down the road again.

"I'll make you walk faster, you half-breed!" Aer mumbled as she raised her hand.

Aer then heard a voice in her head. "Don't! Remember, you're supposed to be a student!"

Aer shook her head. "Stay out of my head, Abnoba! I hate this! I really do."

Adora turned around and looked at Aer, having heard the 'I hate this' comment that the disguised Goddess had uttered aloud. "Hey, it's not that bad. I know it may be hard for a new student and I'm sorry I'm walking too fast for you. Come on. You shouldn't hate school. It's got its good points."

Aer's eyebrow rose as she stared at Adora. "Oh yeah? Name one."

Adora smiled at the challenge. "Boys. I've got a boyfriend, but a girl as pretty as you should have no trouble getting a guy. "

Aer returned the smile. "Thanks. So… Uh… I guess I better introduce myself. My name is Dinah."

"Dinah? That's an unusual name."

"And you are?"

"Oh. My name's Adora."

Aer's gray eyes sparkled with mischief. "Adora? And you think that Dinah's unusual! What kind of a name is Adora?" she scoffed.

Adora's eyes narrowed dangerously. "My dad named me that and I won't let you say anything bad about my dad," she said softly.

Aer put up her hands. "Hey, hold it! I meant no harm! I'm sorry."

Adora calmed down. "Well, all right then, but just watch it. Come on. I think the bell just rang!"

"Andy, eat your porridge."

"But Mom, I hate it and Dad doesn't have to eat it!" Andy protested.

Jett looked at his son. "Who said I don't?" He leaned across the table. "Between you and me, boy, I wouldn't give it to the birds," he confided with a wink, making Andy giggle.

Melody placed her hands on her hips as she scowled at her husband and son. "Oh! So my cooking's not good enough for you! Then why don't you cook your own breakfast?"

Jett got up and placed his arms around his wife. "I'm sorry, Melody. I love your cooking."

Melody stood still as Jett's strong arms circled around her. "I don't believe one word you're saying, Jett. You better finish up your breakfast because Gabrielle told me when she brought Andy home that your brothers are coming over."

Jett let go of his wife and scowled. "Oh great! Jace is probably piss..." Melody gazed at him sternly, her blue eyes darting in their son's direction and he amended his words as he sat back down. "Uh, I mean that he's upset because Autolycus and I threw him into the town fountain," he said as he plunged his spoon into the porridge and raised it towards his lips.

"And why shouldn't he be mad? You had no right to embarrass him that way! The poor man," Melody said, shaking her head.

Jett's jaw dropped open, his spoon still held in mid-air. "Poor man? Come ON, Mel! Jace was bossing us around. He deserved that dunking!"

"Jett, I love you, but you're impossible sometimes. Just tell Jace you're sorry and everything will be fine. Andy and I are going to the marketplace." She leaned down and gave her husband a kiss. "Be nice, all right?" She then turned to Andy, who had just finished up his breakfast. "Are you ready, Andy?"

"Yes, Mom." He got up, walked up to Jett and held out his hand. "Bye, Dad. See you when we get back. Be nice to Uncle Jace."

Jett nodded as he took his son's hand in his then leaned down to give him a hug. "I'll try."

Melody looked at him. "Don't try. See that you do."

Jett watched as they left and finished the last of his breakfast. He then drummed his fingers on the table as he waited for his brothers to show up. When a knock on his door came, he called out wearily, "Come on in, you two."

The door opened to admit a widely grinning Autolycus. "Well, there's only one of me. Too bad. Actually, the world would be a much better place if there were two of me," he chuckled as he walked inside.

Jett leaned back in his chair. "Autolycus, what are you doing here?"

Autolycus looked put out at the ex-assassin's question. "Now, is that any way to talk to your best friend?"

Jett put a hand against his forehead. "How much?"

"Hey! What makes you think that I need money? That has never been my problem, may I remind you!" Autolycus took a seat across the table.

Jett crossed his arms over his chest. "Whenever you call me your best friend, you want something. If it's not money, then what?"

Autolycus took out a small pouch from his vest. "Can you hide this for me? I don't want Xena to see it."

Jett looked at the small black pouch that Autolycus held in his hand and sighed. "Going back to your old ways?" he asked, his left eyebrow rising.

"Hey, it's not like I've killed people," the handsome thief said and Jett growled low in his throat. "Nothing personal." Jett stared at Autolycus, who cleared his throat after a few very uncomfortable moments of silence. "I just couldn't resist this little bauble, for old times' sake. But if the others find out, I'll either be kicked out of this little community or hauled off to jail."

"Why don't you just return it, then?"

Autolycus opened the pouch and took out his prize. Jett saw that it was a large ruby double the size of a dinar with hints of blue fire when the thief held it up to the light. "Would you take this little beauty back?"

"If it meant staying here or hitting the road again with an eye always over my shoulder? Yes, I'd take it back," Jett responded. Suddenly there was another knock on the door and the two men rose to their feet. "Come on in," Jett said.

Joxer came inside pulling a very reluctant Jace by the arm. "Come on, Jace!" he exclaimed, holding onto Jace's arm for dear life.

"No! No! No! That man is in there! I heard his voice."

Joxer rolled his eyes and sighed as he gave a mighty tug and Jace unceremoniously stumbled into the middle of the room. "What is your problem with him, Jace?" he asked in an exasperated voice as the middle triplet composed himself by brushing his hands over his outfit.

Autolycus stepped towards the door. "I was just leaving, Jace. See you later, Jett. Good to see you, Joxer."

Jace glared as the thief departed. "Vermin!" he hissed, watching Autolycus walk outside. He suddenly turned sharply towards Jett, fire in his dark eyes. "I demand an apology and I want it right now!" he exclaimed, stamping his booted foot on the floor for good measure.

Jett stared at Jace for a long time before he spoke. "You're out of your mind! There's no way I'm apologizing to you when you acted like a fool! And another thing, you overgrown baby, Autolycus is my friend and I'm getting sick and tired of you badmouthing him! Gods, Andy acts more grown up than you do!"

Jace was stunned at his brother's outburst. "T-T-T-hat's not an apology!" he stammered.

Jett looked at Joxer. "Give our brother a dinar," he commanded.

Joxer rolled his eyes and mentally started counting for the screaming that was sure to follow. He didn't have to wait long. On cue, Jace screeched in outrage, "YOU BRUTE! THAT OUTFIT COST A LOT MORE THAN ONE DINAR!" He cried out wordlessly as he then took an awkward swing at Jett, who easily stepped aside. Jace would have landed on his face, but Joxer caught him before he fell.

"Will you two knock it off? Jett, just say you're sorry."

"No way, Jox! I'm not telling this two year old brat that I'm sorry!"

"You embarrassed me in front of the entire town!" Jace cried.

"And you are too bossy," Jett replied coldly.

"And you both are being silly. Jace, tell Jett you're sorry for being bossy, and Jett; tell Jace you're sorry for tossing him into the fountain."

Both of Joxer's brothers stared at him. "Since when did you become the oldest?" Jett asked.

"Yeah! Since when you can tell us what to do?" Jace chimed in.

Joxer's dark eyes narrowed in a rare display of anger at his siblings. "Since I'm the only one that's acting like a grownup. Ever since we've been kids, I've always had to be a referee for you two and frankly I'm getting tired of it! Now kiss and make up or else!"

"Or else what, little bro?" Jett asked, the expression on his face silently reminding Joxer that he was the oldest.

"I don't know what, but when I do think of something, watch out. I'm going to go help Gabrielle get ready for Xena's return, and when I get back you two better be making up." Joxer then turned and walked away, Jett and Jace watching him leave.

"Hmm. Seems like Jox is getting a backbone," Jett finally said with a grin, breaking the silence between the two of them.

"Nope," said Jace. "Jox married a backbone." Jett turned to him and they both started laughing, but Jace grew thoughtful and stopped his laughter first. "Actually, that's not true or fair to say. He's always had one. He's just more forceful with voicing his feelings instead of simply allowing everyone to step all over him these days… Look, Jett. I'm sorry that I got bossy."

"Yeah, and I'm sorry I threw you into the fountain, Jace. But tell me: what's your beef with Autolycus that makes you hate him so much?"

Jace lowered his head. "I don't hate him really."

"Oh? You could've fooled me," Jett said, gazing at Jace with a raised eyebrow.

It was a long time before Jace spoke, and when he did it was in a very soft voice. "I'm jealous of him. We've just become brothers again - you, me, and Joxer, and it seems like Autolycus takes up all of your time," he admitted, still not raising his head.

Jett blinked, surprised at Jace's admission. "What about Pierre?"

"I'm married to him. That's different. But whenever we're going to do things as brothers, Autolycus wants to do it too and he takes up all of your time," Jace said. "Sounds pretty silly, doesn't it?" he murmured sadly, turning away from his older brother.

Jett placed his arm around his brother's shoulder. "Jace, I wish you wouldn't feel that way. You're my brother and I care for you. You and Jox will always be my brothers. You don't have to be jealous of Autolycus. Okay?"

Jace slowly nodded. "Okay."

"Good. Now what was I supposed to do before you and Jox came?"

Jace's eyes gleamed with excitement. "Help me rehearse!"

Jett frowned. "Somehow, I don't think it was that."

"Please!"

Jett shook his head. "Lead the way, brother, but I better not have to sing or dance."


	11. Chapter 11

Part 11:

Xena's eyes shot open and focused on a gray sky, sleep immediately leaving her as she rose to a sitting position in her bedroll. The startling blue eyes narrowed and she cocked her head to the right, listening intently.

It was quiet in the clearing - much too quiet for her liking.

Xena cautiously rose to her feet, turning in the direction that her ever-faithful Argo had been grazing in when she had fallen asleep the previous night. The golden palomino mare whickered nervously, her liquid-brown eyes huge as she stared at her approaching mistress.

"Hey…" Xena murmured soothingly as she stood in front of the horse, gently reaching out to pat the velvet muzzle.

Argo bellowed loudly, suddenly backing away from Xena and rearing up in front of her. Xena was so surprised by her normally calm steed's actions that it was only her lightning-quick reflexes that saved her from getting hit by a hoof. She reached out and grabbed her horse's reins and shouted, "Calm down, girl! Shh!"

Xena continued speaking softly to Argo, and eventually the mare calmed down. Xena, however, was not nearly so sanguine as she temporarily left the mare to have a quick bite to eat and then break camp. Her hand kept creeping over to her chakram of its own accord several times and she had to mentally force herself to leave the deadly weapon alone.

Xena gazed up at the sky again as she mounted Argo and sighed; no sun today, but it didn't look like it was going to rain either. The gray sky suited her equally bleak mood. She had been gone from her family and friends for far too long and she had missed them terribly while journeying back from Chin for the past few months. Her thoughts turned to them.

Eve, at seventeen, turning into a poised, beautiful, and strong young woman… Gabrielle, her green eyes sparkling with excitement as she told stories of their adventures that would hold her audience captive for hours upon end… Joxer, playing his lute, always ready with jokes or silly stories that would make everyone laugh… Adora, her lips pouting out in concentration like her father's did as she drew on any empty piece of parchment that she could find… Andy, his short blond hair flying around his face, laughing merrily as he ran into Jett's waiting arms… Even Autolycus still shamelessly flirting with her after all this time was enough to bring a tiny smile to Xena's lips. It's true: you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone, she thought to herself. She made a clicking noise and Argo obediently moved forward.

Horse and rider moved along in companionable silence for some time until a slight breeze stirred up and a faint and odd-smelling odor made its way to Xena's nose. She halted Argo in the middle of the path with a soft murmur and inhaled deeply. Xena exhaled sharply and her stomach roiled in sudden recognition. It was a scent she knew all too well - the sickening stench of bodies decaying combined with the sharp, metallic scent of blood.

Xena's heart sped up in her chest as she urged Argo forward. "YAH!" she cried. Argo's hoofs thundered down the dirt road in response to her mistress' yell. As she rode along the path that would bring her home, Xena carefully scrutinized the land, searching for any clues of a battle recently being fought in the vicinity.

The scent grew stronger as Xena continued riding and dread filled her soul. One hand slid from the reins to clutch at her chakram before she forced herself to concentrate fully on her riding. Her sharp eyes scanned the horizon as she drew Argo to a halt when she spotted a single small puff of smoke rising into the gray sky from a large hill. Her lips drew together in a thin line and her eyes narrowed as she grimly turned the mare towards the smoke.

Xena reached the top of the hill and her eyes widened in shock when she saw the amount of bodies scattered across the plain. She had Argo come to a halt and she nimbly dismounted from the mare, murmuring for her to stay while she looked around. The mare snorted, but she put her head down to graze while Xena cautiously walked towards the outskirts of the battle with sword drawn and eyes darting back and forth.

Xena sighed as two vultures lit down and greedily began feeding on the carcass of a half-eaten man not too far away from where she was standing. She turned away, her face drawn up in disgust. The scent of decaying bodies made her stomach churn uncomfortably. Her nostrils flared as she straightened to full height and grimly began picking her way through the dead but she stopped short when something registered in her whirling mind.

Xena's eyes widened when it occurred to her that the dead weren't soldiers but villagers upon closer inspection. There were shields, swords, maces, and other weapons normally seen in combat but none of the dead were clothed in any particular garb that would identify them as any part of a specific army garrison. As she continued to pick her way amongst the corpses, Xena even saw that a couple of fallen men held pitchforks in their stiffened hands and she shook her head in disbelief.

Xena knelt down beside one of the bodies and she saw that whoever had killed the man lying next to her was no professional. He had not died from a single quick stab to the gut or had his throat slit, but he had been stabbed repeatedly. She noted how haphazard the wound strike pattern was and it seemed to her that the killer had gone completely insane with rage, striking out blindly until his victim fell.

Xena swallowed hard as she rose to her feet and began walking again, her sharp mind taking in everything that she saw in minute detail. She heard the softest of moans and her blue eyes widened in alarm. Gods… Someone is actually still alive… she thought to herself. She whirled around in the direction of the moaning, her ears straining until she heard it again and she could determine exactly where the person was. Grimly, she slowly and carefully maneuvered herself over the fallen until she found the man.

A metallic taste filled Xena's mouth when she saw the man's condition - and his age. He was no more than eighteen summers, she reckoned as she knelt down next to him. He didn't have long to live, she saw. Infection had already set into the gaping wound in his stomach. She could see some yellow-green pus weeping from the wound in conjunction with the slow stream of blood that trickled out with every shuddering breath of air he took in his failing lungs.

The sight of the man and the foul stench of imminent death, combined with the knowledge that there was nothing Xena could do to help him except for delivering a quick and final blow of mercy to relieve his suffering suddenly threatened to overwhelm the battle-hardened warrior. She resolutely swallowed back the bile that rose to her throat as the young man's eyes opened and focused on her.

"X-X-Xena," the man whispered, his unusual silver-colored eyes wide as he recognized the tall warrior.

Xena carefully put her hand over what was left of his upper arm - the man's hand and part of the lower limb had been hacked away. "What happened?" she asked in as gentle a voice that she could muster under the circumstances.

The man's breathing was becoming labored. "World's gone mad," he managed to choke out. He coughed once, a harsh rattling cough. A trickle of bloody spit fell down his chin. "Death everywhere… Towns burning…" His eyes were beginning to lose their focus.

Xena's eyes widened at the man's last two words. "There's a town five leagues to the south of here…"

The man's eyes widened as he drew in one last, wheezing breath and became still. Xena rose to her feet shakily, staring down at the man's face. It seemed to her as she moved away from him that his eyes stared up at her accusingly, damning her for having the unmitigated gall to still live. She turned away from him, her face drawn up in an ugly scowl that hid her increasing anxiety.

Argo whickered uneasily as her mistress approached. "Me too, old girl. I don't like it either. Let's go home," Xena growled low in her throat, taking a moment to pat the mare's neck once in reassurance before mounting up and heading back down the road at top speed, her fury and anxiety increasing with each stride the golden mare took.

As Xena rode along the road, she met no travelers along the way but she saw many dead bodies off the road, and once, she had to slow Argo down and guide her around two half-decayed bodies lying smack dab in the middle of it. She saw that both bodies had swords stuck through their stomachs. Her anxiety grew and threatened to overtake her several times as she approached her home. She held onto the reins so tightly as she urged Argo onward that she didn't even realize that the leather straps were beginning to cut into the palms of her hands.

A couple of hours later, Xena finally reached the town's outskirts and she drew Argo to a halt, gasping sharply when she saw that the gates leading into the sleepy town had been destroyed. She slowly dismounted the golden mare, unsheathed her sword, and warily led Argo through the remains of the town gates and down the path that led to the marketplace - only there was no marketplace.

There was simply - nothing - nothing but burnt-out remains of buildings. The memory of leading her army to loot and burn Cirra came back to the ex-warlord's mind with a vengeance and Xena's face turned white.

Cirra post-sacking looked like downtown Athens compared to this place.

Xena heard a noise a short distance away from her and she whirled around, sword held before her defensively. She breathed in, trying to calm herself down when she saw that it was only a piece of pottery that had fallen from the remains of a windowsill.

"Gabrielle… Eve…" Xena murmured, her mind immediately slamming back into the present. Dropping Argo's reins, she broke into a sprint, running as fast as she could towards Gabrielle and Joxer's home, her heart beating in her chest like a sledgehammer as she ran.

Xena didn't even feel her sword drop from her nerveless fingers as she skidded to a stop before her best friends' home. "Oh no," she moaned, shaking her head in disbelief. "No…" The strength left her legs and she fell to her knees. "No," she repeated over and over, her voice growing louder as she stared with wide eyes. Gabrielle's sais… Joxer's sword, lying to one side… The burned skeletal remains of a leg, separated from its body…

Xena had killed many men in her past life as a warlord and had been both the cause and witness of many gruesome scenes in her life, but - nothing - had ever prepared her for anything like this. Her head kept shaking in disbelief as she continued staring, her voice rising to shrill screams as she repeated over and over: "NO… NO… NO… NOOOOOOOOOO!"

As Xena's grief-stricken cries echoed through the silent valley, a gentle rain began to fall from the gray midday sky.

"NOOOOOOOOOO!" Xena yelled, her heart pounding in her chest as she bolted upright in her bedroll. She breathed in deeply in an effort to calm herself, her mind distantly registering the fact that she was sweating and that her body was shaking like a leaf. Her eyes flew up to gaze at the sky - a deep and almost cloudless azure. She could hear birds chirping in the trees and Argo neighed cheerfully to her mistress in greeting.

Xena fought back the temptation to be sick by continuing to take in several deep breaths and hanging her head low until the sensation passed. "A dream… It was nothing but a bad dream," she murmured, wiping her sweaty forehead.

"Morpheus sometimes takes his job a little too seriously, I'm afraid."

Xena immediately shot to her feet, all traces of her earlier distress gone, replaced with fury. "Athena!" she growled as the Goddess of Wisdom appeared before her. Her fists clenched together as she drew herself to full height. "What do you want?" she demanded in a deadly soft voice, her eyes narrowing dangerously.

Athena gazed at Xena serenely. "I think you know why I'm here," she said simply.

Xena licked her lips, taking in the Goddess' words. "Eve... Adora…" she said in a whisper. "It's beginning to happen, isn't it?"

The Goddess nodded. "You must hurry, Xena. Time grows short." Athena then disappeared into the ether in a flash of white-hot light.

Xena blinked furiously as the after-effects of the Goddess' departure flashed before her eyes for several seconds. When it finally stopped, she walked towards Argo, who whickered. She reached out and gently scratched underneath the golden mare's chin. "We've got two days of hard traveling, old friend."

Argo snorted in reply and Xena smiled grimly. "I just hope that we're not too late."


	12. Chapter 12

Part 12:

Jett and Jace were heading for the dance school when a boy ran up to Jett. "Are you Jett the bounty hunter?"

"Yes."

"I've got a message for you." The boy handed Jett the scroll and waited. Jett dropped a dinar in his hand and the boy left.

Jace watched as Jett opened the scroll and read it with a grim look on his face. "Bad news?" he asked.

"I've got to go after and bring back Tolly," answered Jett, shaking his head in disbelief.

"TOLLY? But he's a farmer!" Jace exclaimed as he stared at Jett in astonishment.

"I know, but according to this he's wanted for several killings and I've been ordered to bring him in dead or alive." Jett handed Jace the scroll and Jace quickly read it.

"If I didn't just read this, I'd say you were out of your mind," Jace said finally as he returned the scroll to his brother. "Well, I hope you bring him back alive. There's got to be a reason why this happened. Tolly's got a family."

Jett sighed as he returned Jace's gaze and rolled the scroll up into a tight roll. "He used to have a family, you mean. I better go talk to Mel. I'll have to take a rain-check on helping you."

"I understand. Be careful, okay?"

"I will, Jace. Thanks."

Jett walked away and Jace headed back to his dance school alone. He was almost there when he spotted Eve. "Eve, why aren't you in school?"

"Hi, Uncle Jace. I ripped my skirt and had to come home and change it." She pointed to the large rip.

Jace's eyes widened with distress when he saw the damage. "Oh no! Not the skirt Xena worked on so hard to make for you?"

"Yes..." Eve suddenly broke down and cried.

"Hey," Jace said as he took Eve in his arms and gently patted her back. "Don't cry, Evie. Maybe it can be repaired. I'll have Pierre take a look at it. He's an expert on sewing. He makes most of my outfits."

Eve nodded as she wiped her eyes. "Thanks, Uncle Jace. I better get to the house and change!"

Jace nodded as Eve hurried away.

Joxer was chopping wood when Eve came into the yard. "Eve, what's the matter?"

"Tore my skirt! Had to come home and change!" Eve exclaimed, not bothering to stop or turn in Joxer's direction as she ran into the house.

Gabrielle turned from checking the meat she was browning for the stew she was going to make for that night's supper when Eve came thundering over the threshold. "Eve?"

Eve sighed as she came to a halt to catch her breath. "I tore my skirt."

Gabrielle's eyebrows rose. "Not..."

Eve rolled her eyes. "Yes, Aunt Gabrielle, the one Mom made me! Uncle Jace is going to see if Uncle Pierre can repair it. I don't have time to talk. I'm going to be late as it is and you know how Foon Li gets if anybody's late for his astronomy class."

Gabrielle nodded as Eve ran back into the spare bedroom to change quickly. Eve waved goodbye as she ran back down the road towards school. Gabrielle came out and went over to Joxer. "I hope Pierre can repair her skirt."

Joxer placed his arms around his wife. "If anyone can, he can."

Melody kept reading the scroll over and over. "This makes no sense! Tolly? That man wouldn't harm a fly!"

"Mel, I know it makes no sense. I couldn't believe what I was reading at first either, but there are just too many witnesses. He's killed his own family and a few neighbors in cold blood. I've got to bring him in. It's my job."

Melody turned away from her husband. "I hate your job."

Jett wrapped his arms around her. "I know you do, but I'm good at it and it puts food on our table."

Melody stood stiffly in her husband's embrace. "Why can't you be a farmer?" she asked softly.

Jett laughed. "Me, a farmer?" He slowly broke the embrace and Melody walked over to the window. He sighed as his hands fell loosely to his sides. "I've got to go before his trail gets too cold," he added in quietly.

Melody leaned against the windowsill and stared outside. "When will you be back?"

"As soon as I get Tolly and take him in. I'll try to be back before Xena comes."

She nodded once. "You better go, then. Say goodbye to Andy."

"Mel…"

"Just go, Jett."

Jett hesitated for a moment and almost began walking toward her before his face grew expressionless and he slowly walked from the room instead, hearing the sound of Melody softly crying as he walked out the door of their home and into their small front yard where Andy was playing with his wooden sword. "Those are pretty good moves, son."

Andy turned and looked at his father with a big gap-toothed smile on his face. "Thanks, Dad!"

Jett sat down on a rock. "Come here, Andreas. I need to tell you something."

The smile left the little boy's face as he approached his father and stood in front of him. His father never called him that unless something was wrong. "Yes sir?"

"Andy, I'm going away for a few days and I'm leaving you in charge."

Andy stood before Jett as tall and as proudly as a five year old could manage. "I'll do a good job, Dad."

"I know you will." Jett replied as he ruffled his son's hair and then knelt down and gave him a big hug. "I've got to go now. Be good for your mother. I'll miss you," he whispered in Andy's ear. Jett rose to his feet and walked into the stable where his horse was, Andy following behind him. The little boy watched his father with a solemn expression on his face as Jett saddled up then mounted his horse.

Andy moved to the side and looked up at Jett. "Everything will be just as you left it, Dad."

Jett nodded and started to ride away when Melody ran out, calling to him. "Jett! Jett!"

Jett wheeled his horse around and Melody ran over to him. He quickly got off his horse as she ran into his arms. "Please be careful. I love you."

"I'll be careful, Mel. I promise. I love you too," Jett rasped in Melody's ear. He held her a little longer, closing his eyes as he deeply breathed in the vanilla scent of her hair then let her go. He walked over to his horse, remounted, and rode away, looking over his shoulder once before urging the horse into a gallop.

Melody felt her son's hand touch hers. "Don't cry, Mommy. He'll come back."

Melody sadly smiled down at her son and put her arm around his shoulders. "I know."

Eve arrived at school, slightly out of breath from her full run from Gabrielle and Joxer's home and saw Adora talking to Stephanos. She hurried over to them. "Dorie, why aren't you in Foon Li's class? You know how he feels about students being late!"

Adora and Stephanos ignored Eve. Suddenly, Adora reached up and kissed Stephanos forcefully on the lips. "I've got to go now, Stephy, but I'll see you later," Adora purred.

Eve stared at the two of them. "What's going on here?" she demanded.

"What's it look like, Evie?" Adora replied. "I asked Stephanos to the dance and he said yes."

"But you can't go to the dance! You're grounded and Stephanos is my boyfriend!"

Adora smiled at Eve. "I'm going to that dance and sweet Dad ain't gonna stop me."

"And how do you plan to do that?"

"I'll use my powers if I have to."

Eve shook her head. "Your powers? I thought you lost them."

"Nah, I've just been Daddy's little girl, but now it's time for Daddy's little girl to grow up. See you, Stephanos."

"Stephanos is MY boyfriend," Eve repeated.

Adora smirked. "Really? Let him speak for himself. Stephanos, are you Eve's boyfriend?"

Stephanos looked at Adora and grinned. "Eve? Who's Eve?" He then took Adora's hand and they walked inside. Adora turned around and stuck out her tongue at Eve.

Once inside, Adora took Stephanos inside a storage closet. "Better turn myself back, handsome, and take the spell off you. There's nothing worse than a best friend stealing a boyfriend."

Aer giggled as she changed herself back into her "Dinah" disguise and looked at Stephanos, who stared at her blankly. "Well, handsome, as soon as I leave here, you won't remember a thing that happened in the last twenty minutes." Aer snapped her fingers and left Stephanos alone in the storage closet.

Stephanos shook his head and looked around, wondering what he was doing in a storage closet. He walked out and spotted Eve hurrying down the hall. "Eve! Hey Eve! Wait up! I'll walk you to your class."

Eve stopped in her tracks and whirled around to face him. Stephanos halted in the middle of the hall when he saw the look on Eve's face - and her eyes. The blue eyes were like her mother's were when she was furious and the young man gulped nervously. "Eve?"

"Don't you Eve me, Stephanos!" she snapped.

"Eve, what's wrong?" Stephanos asked with a very confused expression on his handsome features.

"You can take Adora to the dance. I wouldn't go with you if you paid me!"

"WHAT? Adora? I don't want to take Adora! I want to take you!"

Eve turned around and walked away from Stephanos, paying no attention to him as he called her name several times before he finally gave up. He turned around and walked to his philosophy class, shaking his head in puzzlement.

When Eve got to Foon Li's class, she opened the door and walked inside. The astronomer from Chin looked at her disapprovingly. "You're late, Eve."

"I'm sorry, sir," Eve replied. "I..." she started to give an explanation as to why she was late, but the astronomer put his hand up, signaling her to keep silent.

"I don't like students to be late for class. Lateness creates disharmony. You will write me an essay on the composition of stars and it is due next week. Now take your seat," he said.

Eve started to walk to her usual seat but decided not to sit there and took another one instead.

"Is there something wrong with your seat, Eve?" Foon Li asked.

"No sir," answered Eve.

"Then I suggest that you sit in your own seat."

Eve nodded as she went back to her own seat and sat down. Adora smiled at her but Eve ignored her.


	13. Chapter 13

Part 13:

Gaul:

Abnoba walked inside a room that was mostly bare with the exception of a large mirror hung on the wall. Her eyebrow rose when she saw Brigandu and Taranis standing in front of it, watching the images of Aer in her mortal guise and Adora talking as they walked towards the school.

Taranis turned his head briefly when he heard Abnoba's approach. "You're just in time for the show," he murmured, then turned back to face the mirror.

"How thrilling," Abnoba replied dryly as she came to a halt next to Brigandu. She crossed her arms over her chest and the three watched in silence as the two walked inside the school. The mirror's image changed to inside the building, where Adora pointed towards an older man. She then excused herself and walked into Foon Li's class.

There was a slight shimmer as Aer changed herself to look exactly like Adora just as Stephanos rounded the corner. "Adora" greeted the young man with a huge smile, which he returned and she surreptitiously pointed at him, zapping him with a tiny jolt of blue-white lightning. Stephanos' eyes glazed over for a split second when the jolt hit him and then regained their focus. His warm and open smile quickly transformed to an oily smirk.

"Adora" pressed herself up against Stephanos and spoke to him in a low murmur. Eve burst into the hallway just then, slightly out of breath from her sprint back from Gabrielle and Joxer's home.

Taranis chuckled softly as they watched "Adora" reach up and kiss the temporarily bewitched Stephanos forcefully on the lips, to Eve's complete astonishment. "Aer knows how to go for the jugular, doesn't she?"

Abnoba pursed her lips together, unimpressed. "Normally she prefers to go for something much lower than that," she observed. "Being subtle is a concept that's completely lost upon her, I'm afraid."

Brigandu and Taranis exchanged glances. "It doesn't matter how she gets the job done, Abnoba. The point is that she's started to create a deep fracture in Adora and Eve's friendship," Taranis noted. "Would you have done any better?"

Ice-blue eyes glittered at the unspoken challenge in Taranis' voice. "My methods are simply different than hers," she replied, her voice brittle. She turned back to Brigandu. "Excuse me," she murmured.

Brigandu inclined her head slightly. "Of course," she replied softly, her left eyebrow rising as she watched Abnoba leave. She sighed as she turned back to the mirror to watch what was happening. "Was that necessary, Taranis?" she growled. "Abnoba's right. Aer is capricious at the best of times..."

"Yes, and that's why she's perfect for this assignment," the thunder God interrupted before Brigandu could continue. "She's more than capable of reaching into the darkest recesses of mortals' minds and bringing out the worst in them, no matter how innocent and good they seem to be on the surface. Her methods may be unorthodox in execution, yet she's never failed to get what we want."

Brigandu nodded slowly. "True," she allowed reluctantly. She watched in silence for a minute before she spoke again, her brow furrowing. "My son is summoning me," she murmured, closing her ebony-colored eyes for a moment.

Taranis didn't bother turning around to gaze at her. He merely nodded as she left the hall to find Teutales, not noticing the troubled expression on her beautiful features.

Earlier that morning, Greece:

Hercules' eyes widened as he woke up with a start shortly past dawn, a frown furrowing his forehead. With a soft grunt, he rose to a sitting position in his bedroll and turned towards his still-sleeping companions. "Weird," he muttered as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Could've sworn I heard someone yelling... Must've been a dream..." he mumbled, rubbing away the stiffness in his neck.

Deciding to leave his two companions alone for a little bit before rousing them for breakfast since they were going to be doing some hard traveling over the next few days, Hercules slowly rose to his feet, stretched to get the kinks out of his body, and headed to the water for a quick swim, grabbing a cloth to wipe himself dry post-swim. Stripping down to his shorts, he ran to the water and once he had waded far enough, he dove in and swam around for a while.

Hercules swam back to shore, feeling refreshed, if not content, from his dip. His thoughts turned back to yesterday's events as he walked onto the beach, using a cloth to dry himself off and the dark blond eyebrows drew together with a frown. He sighed as he put his clothing on and began walking back towards camp.

Iolaus and White Dove were both awake and the hunter was getting a fire started for their breakfast. White Dove smiled when she saw the tall demigod approaching and signed, Good morning.

"Hi," Hercules greeted his best friend's wife with a warm grin, which she returned. He then turned to Iolaus, who had just gotten the fire lit. "Hey…"

"Morning Herc," Iolaus said, lifting a hand up to muffle a loud yawn. "What a night! Couldn't seem to get comfortable at all," he continued, frowning as he arched his neck to get rid of a crook in it. "Must've had a stone or something underneath the pelts," he grumbled as he tossed some fish into the now-hot frying pan.

Hercules chuckled at his longtime friend's continued inaudible growling as he eased himself down onto the ground. He then turned towards White Dove, who looked troubled as she put dishes out. "Is something the matter?" he asked while he pulled out the last of their flatbread and a round of cheese from his pack. He cut the round into three equal sections and put them on the plates.

Iolaus turned curiously in his wife's direction when he heard the concerned tone in his longtime friend's voice. "Are you feeling all right, sweetheart?" he asked, his blond eyebrows furrowing together in a frown. He shifted position so that he could watch both of his companions and their breakfast at the same time.

I'm fine, White Dove signed in reassurance. Perhaps last night's supper didn't go over so well in my stomach, she teased.

Hercules' face fell - he had cooked their meal the previous evening.

Iolaus brought his hand up to his mouth, hiding the sudden grin that sprang to his lips. His blue eyes twinkled with mischief as he gazed at his wife then at Hercules. He started to laugh, but quickly covered it with a faked coughing fit when he saw his friend glaring at him.

White Dove smiled at the demigod's outraged facial expression and she couldn't help but start giggling. I'm kidding! The meal was delicious.

"You're still the better cook though," Iolaus chimed in, now laughing openly at the chagrined expression on his friend's face.

White Dove gently hit her husband on the arm. Stop teasing him, my love - and if you're not careful, you're going to burn the main part of our breakfast.

Iolaus quickly turned his attention back to the fish, which were ready to be taken off the fire. "Jeez! Don't you people have anything better to eat than that? Yuck!"

"And good morning to you too, Aphrodite," Hercules sighed as the Goddess of Love appeared from a shower of pink sparkles in front of the three friends.

The Goddess' nose wrinkled as the scent of fried fish rose to her nostrils. "It was a rhetorical question, 'kay?" she grumbled. She tossed her curls over her shoulders as she turned around to face Iolaus and White Dove. "Good morning, lovebirds," she added in with a gorgeous grin and a cheeky wink.

White Dove smiled and signed a good morning in response and Iolaus used the back of his hand to wipe his mouth. "Morning," he mumbled before attacking the remainder of his fish with gusto.

Aphrodite stuck her tongue out in disgust. "Eww! Like where did you learn your manners, Curly?" she asked. "Gross!"

"Aphrodite..." Hercules said in a warning tone.

"Okay, okay, okay! All right, already!" the Goddess threw her hands up in surrender. She snapped her fingers and a pink overstuffed chair appeared behind her. She smiled and sat down in the seat, prettily crossing her legs. "Might as well make myself comfortable while you guys chow down," she observed.

Iolaus sighed and shook his head in response. White Dove put a gentle hand on her husband's shoulder to get his attention. He looked at her and rolled his eyes. She made a "let's make the best of a weird situation" gesture and turned her attention back towards her food.

Iolaus cleared his throat and smiled up at Aphrodite, who warily returned his gaze. "So, where is..."

"Tall, Dark, and Grumpy?" The Goddess twirled a blonde strand around her index finger and changed position in her chair so that her long and shapely legs were propped over an armrest. "Taking care of some totally last-minute stuff in Thessaly," she sighed, rolling her eyes.

Hercules growled low in his throat. "So what else is new?" he snapped, finishing the last of his breakfast and rising to his feet. His fists clenched together and his nostrils flared out briefly as he tried to control his temper.

"Don't you start with me, big bro!" the Love Goddess warned, momentarily putting a hand to her forehead as she also rose to her feet. "Daddy is so gonna owe me big time for putting up with the two of you after all of this is over!" she muttered under her breath and snapped her fingers. The oversized pink chair disappeared into the ether in a flash of golden sparkles. She pointed her right index finger at the remains of the mortals' breakfast and a sizzling bright pink bolt shot from it. There was a flash of light as the camp was tidied up and their supplies neatly placed in their packs.

"Uh... Thanks a lot, Aphrodite," Iolaus said, picking up one of the packs after rubbing the aftereffects from the zap away from his eyes.

"No problemo, Curly," Aphrodite replied as she shrugged her shoulders. "Hey!" she suddenly exclaimed with a big smile as she raised her left hand. "I can..."

"We're walking, Aphrodite," the demigod stated firmly.

"But, but, but...!" the Goddess began protesting.

"NO ZAPPING!"

"Oh, all right! Fine, then!" Aphrodite agreed reluctantly, rolling her eyes as she turned away to glance at the calm seas for a moment. "Like have it your way already!" she sighed, putting her hands on her hips and shaking her head as she did. There was no response from the three. Puzzled, she turned around to see that they were already making their way off the beach and heading towards inland. "HEY! WAIT FOR ME!" she called out.

"Glad you could join us after all," Hercules said with a laconic grin as Aphrodite walked over as quickly as she could in her slippered feet to the others.

The Love Goddess rolled her eyes. "Like whatever! Let's get this show on the road, huh?"

A flash of blue-white light to the small group's right indicated the arrival of a darkly scowling God of War.

"Here comes trouble with a capital T," Iolaus muttered.

Don't, my love, White Dove signed, shaking her head. It's going to be difficult enough as it is to keep the two of them from going to blows over the littlest thing…

The blond hunter nodded in silent agreement as the two half-brothers hostilely sized each other up. "Yep. This is definitely going to be a fun next couple of days of traveling…"

Aphrodite sighed and shook her head. "Daddy-kins, having to put up with these two will so mean major payback after all this mess is over!" she murmured. She raised her index and middle fingers to her lips and to Iolaus' shock, she let loose with a loud, piercing whistle that made Hercules and Ares turn and stare at the Love Goddess in astonishment.

"ALL RIGHT! YOU!" Aphrodite pointed at the grumbling War God. "Stand next to her!" she jerked her thumb in White Dove's direction. Ares didn't move from the spot he was standing in. She stormed over to him, reached up, and yanked his ear down to her lips. "I SAID: MOVE IT!" she screeched over his protesting yelps.

Hercules chuckled as Ares moved over to stand next to White Dove, rubbing his very sore ear. "Serves you right!" he gloated.

The War God growled under his breath, but in a remarkable display of restraint, he refrained from raising his hand to throw a fireball at his laughing half-brother. He settled for sneering at Hercules instead. "You just wait until this is over, Jerkules! Then you'll get what's been coming to you for a long time!" he threatened.

"Stuff it, Ares!" Aphrodite then whirled around to face her half-brother. "And you knock it off with the smart-mouth remarks, Herc! I wouldn't have to go to these totally grody extremes to keep the two of you separated if both of you weren't acting like spoiled brats in the first place!" she snapped, wagging her index finger at him like she would if scolding a naughty child.

The demigod blinked in surprise, but didn't say a word as he stood next to Iolaus. Aphrodite looked down at herself. "Well, if I've gotta hoof it like the mortals do, I might as well be dressed for the occasion." She waved her hand over her head and her outfit changed into a simple outfit that was similar in appearance to White Dove's without the fringes. "Lead on, Curly!"

Iolaus sighed and the motley crew started their journey.


	14. Chapter 14

Part 14:

Jett carefully slowed Red Fox down, making sure that Tolly's trail was still readable in the soft and sandy ground. The chestnut gelding whinnied and snorted uneasily. "Easy boy," Jett said as he patted the horse's neck in reassurance. His dark brown eyes scanned the area sharply as he continued down the road, looking for any signs of the farmer moving away from the path.

The bounty hunter rode into a village and stared in horrified shock at what he saw. "Gods..." Jett whispered, shaking his head in disbelief. There were bodies laying in the middle of the village center, the women weeping over them. But what made Jett's blood run cold was the fact that all of them were children, slaughtered like animals...

One woman looked up at him. She picked up the body of her child and rose to her feet. "Tell me: why would anyone do such a thing? These men rode in and killed our children before we could stop them! This is a peaceful farming village!"

Jett stared at the dead child the woman held in her arms and swallowed hard as he dismounted his horse. It was a boy that was no older than his own son. "I don't know. I'm looking for a man named Tolly. He's wanted for the murder of his family and several neighbors."

The woman held her murdered son up to her chest and wept. "That was the name of the leader of those men," she managed to choke out between her sobs.

Jett nodded. "Is there anything I can do?" he asked hoarsely. "Where are your husbands?"

The woman swiped carelessly at her eyes. "They were out in the fields when this happened, and now they're out looking for those murderers." She swallowed hard, trying to compose herself. "Just catch those men. We will take care of our children."

Jett remounted Red Fox and started to ride off, but the sounds of the women mourning the loss of their children made him turn around and come back. He dismounted from the gelding and walked over to the woman that he had spoken to earlier. "I'll help you with your dead," he offered.

"No!" the woman exclaimed. Even as her tears fell down her cheeks, her eyes grew hard as she stared up at him. "Find those men and bring them to justice - if you can."

Jett nodded, not knowing what else to say. He remounted Red Fox and rode off, trying to see if he could pick up a trail. He managed to find one that seemed to look promising and he began tracking down Tolly and the rest of the men who had murdered all the children in the village he had passed through.

A bit past midday, Jett came upon the remains of a camp and he reined in his horse, not realizing that he had uttered a sharp gasp. Red Fox snorted and stamped his feet anxiously before coming to a halt so that the bounty hunter could dismount.

Jett got down from the saddle and stood next to Red Fox, not quite believing what he was seeing at first. There were bodies scattered around the campsite, and it appeared to the ex-assassin that the men had literally turned on each other. The smell of blood made the gelding nervous as he sucked in his breath. Jett patted the horse's neck in reassurance as he continued to stare.

One man stood in the middle of the campsite, looking down at all the dead bodies lying about his feet. His green eyes were lifeless as he kept muttering over and over, "Oh Gods, what have I done?"

Jett approached the man carefully. "Tolly?" he said warily.

The man turned around, his hands clutched tightly against his stomach, blood steadily seeping through his fingers. "I killed them. My family, my friends, and all those children: all of them, dead. Now all of these men turning against each other and fighting to the death..." He stared at Jett. "Why?"

"I have to bring you in, Tolly," Jett said grimly as he began walking towards the bloodied farmer.

Tolly shook his head, his hands falling away from his stomach. "It's too late to bring me in alive, bounty hunter. Too late..." Tolly's eyes rolled up in his head as he staggered forward and fell at Jett's feet.

Jett stooped down and checked Tolly for a pulse, but knew it wasn't worth it. The farmer was dead. Something really bad is happening here, Jett thought silently as he rose to his feet and walked over to his horse. He took out a rope and blanket. He searched the area briefly and found two long and sturdy-appearing branches. He made a makeshift stretcher and dragged the dead farmer over to it.

As he put Tolly's body on the stretcher, Jett's mind whirled in confusion. Good men like Tolly killing his family and friends and now all those innocent children being slaughtered by him and the gang that he gathered together... What is going on here?

Jett quickly mounted Red Fox and headed for home, mentally reminding himself that he needed to go back to the village and tell the residents that there were several bodies that needed to be taken care of. As the gelding moved along the road, Jett hoped that Xena would be back soon from her trip to Chin so they all could sit down and try to figure out what was going on.

Adora tried all day to talk to Eve but her tall brown-haired friend wouldn't even look at her. When school was over for the day, Eve started walking towards Gabrielle and Joxer's house by herself.

Adora had to run to catch up to her taller friend. Puffing from running at top speed, she said, "What's with you today? You've been avoiding me all day." Eve ignored her and kept walking. "Hey! I'm talking to you, Eve."

Eve turned around and Adora stopped short when she saw the expression on the taller girl's face and the anger in her blue eyes. "Whoa! Where did that look come from?"

"Adora, you stay away from me! I never want to speak to you again. When we get back, I'm going to be staying with Aunt Melody and Andy until Uncle Jett comes back," Eve growled.

Adora blinked several times before she asked, "What did I do?"

"You know what you did, you hussy!" Eve growled.

Adora's eyes grew wide as she became more puzzled by the second. "Huh? Hussy? What's a hussy?"

"I don't know, but I heard Uncle Jace call Uncle Pierre that once and it's not good. It made Uncle Pierre very unhappy," Eve said as they continued walking along the road.

"I thought you said you never wanted to speak with me again," Adora pointed out. She shook her head, not understanding what she could've done to make her friend so angry at her.

"I don't! Oh, stop talking to me!" Eve yelled.

"Eve, why are you so upset? Is it about your skirt?"

"Gods, Adora! Why are you even bothering to pretend that you care? Do you think I'm blind? You kissed Stephanos right in front of me and he acted like I didn't even exist!" Frustrated tears filled Eve's blue eyes and she turned away, embarrassed.

Adora's jaw dropped open slightly as she reacted to her friend's words. Slowly, she reached out and put her hands on Eve's shoulders "I'm sorry, Eve, but you've got to believe me. That wasn't me kissing Stephanos, I swear! I had already gone inside the classroom to try and explain why you were going to be late, but you know how Foon Li gets..."

Eve wanted to pull away from Adora's gentle grasp but she didn't. "I wish Mom was here. Gods, I miss her."

"I miss Aunt Xena too," Adora agreed with a nod. "But she'll be home soon."

Eve looked up. "Can you tell me where she is like you used to?"

Adora frowned. "I don't know, Eve. It's been such a long time since I used my powers that I don't even think that they work anymore..." She turned away for a moment, lost in her own thoughts. "I don't miss using them, to tell the truth. I don't feel like I'm some kind of freak," she admitted softly.

"I understand," Eve said quietly.

Adora turned around when she heard the sad tone in her best friend's voice. "Evie, I can try and see if they still work," she offered.

Eve's eyebrows rose. "Are you sure you want to?" she asked.

Adora nodded. "Yeah, let's go to the river. If they're still working, I can use the water like a mirror."

Aer stood behind a tree and clenched her fists, watching as the teenagers left for the river.

"It's going to take more than coming between their boyfriends to break those two up. Their friendship is extremely strong," Abnoba's voice said in her head.

"Shut up, Abnoba! You do your job and I'll do mine! I just have to think of something else," the War Goddess snarled.

Abnoba's laughter echoed in Aer's ears and it only made her more determined than ever to break the ties of Eve and Adora's strong friendship. So, she decided to follow them to the river. Maybe, she figured, she could do something to upset things there.

Adora and Eve reached the river after a short walk. Adora carefully looked around, her dark eyes flashing with worry.

"What are you doing?" Eve asked as they sat down at the riverbank.

"I'm just making sure that my dad's not around. I don't want him to know I'm trying to use my powers again."

Eve frowned. "But don't you two have a connection?"

"It's not as strong as it was when I was a child," Adora answered sadly. Then she shook her head, her eyebrows furrowing in concentration. "Well, it looks okay. Come on. Let's do this..." She raised her hand up.

Eve suddenly reached out and took it in hers. "Dorie, do you really want to do this?"

"I just feel funny doing this behind Papa's back, but you're my best friend so I'll do it."

Eve sighed. "No. It was wrong for me to ask you to do it. Let's just go home. Mom's going to be back in a couple of days anyway."

Adora smiled at her. "Thanks, Eve."

"Hey, what are friends for?"

Aer watched the two teens as they rose to their feet and began walking back towards town. "I've got to do something. I can't fail. I won't fail!" The Goddess made herself invisible to the two girls and walked up behind Adora, firing an invisible bolt at the teen, forcing her under the Goddess' control.

Adora was shocked when her arm suddenly rose up of its own volition and a fireball appeared to shoot from her fingertips, barely missing Eve.

"Adora, are you crazy?" Eve gasped.

"I... I... I... It was an accident! I swear!"

Eve was about to say something in response when Adora "fired" again and Eve had to tuck and roll so she wouldn't be hit. "Adora, stop it!" she yelled, her blue eyes wide with shock.

"I can't! I can't control it! Eve, help me please! I can't control it!" Adora cried as she "shot" another fireball from her fingers.

Aer silently giggled as she controlled the helpless girl and forced her to turn in Eve's direction. It was easy to make it appear that Adora was shooting fireballs from her fingertips. "Foolish girl! If I can't break your friendship up, I can take you out instead!" she sneered.

Jett was on his way home after dropping off Tolly's body at the local magistrate's. Red Fox cantered nervously when he saw the fire and whinnied. "Easy boy!" the bounty hunter said in a soothing voice, trying to calm the horse down, but the gelding snorted, his eyes rolling up in fright.

Jett attempted to make the gelding go around the fire but the smell of burning brush frightened the horse. Finally, he dismounted Red Fox and slapped him on the rump. With a loud bellow, the terrified gelding ran off in the direction of home. In the meantime, Jett decided to check out the fire.

Eve screamed as Adora "shot" off another fireball at her. "Gods, Dorie! Stop it, please!"

"I can't, Evie! I can't!" Adora wailed.

Jett silently stepped into the clearing, his eyes widening with surprise when he saw what was happening.

Aer, sensing that another mortal was in the area turned around and saw the ex-assassin approaching the two girls. With a flick of her wrist, she released her control over Adora and moved to the side to see what would happen next.

Jett quickly moved behind his terrified niece and grabbed her arms, pulling them behind her back and wrapping them tightly around his. "It's okay, Dorie! I've got you!" he exclaimed.

Adora, hearing her uncle's voice, slowly relaxed in his grip and then burst into tears. "Oh Uncle Jett, I couldn't control my powers!"

Jett looked at her with worried eyes and then turned his attention to a pale-faced Eve. "What's going on?" he demanded quietly, releasing his grip on Adora so she could calm down.

Eve stepped forward a couple of paces, biting her bottom lip nervously. "I asked Dorie to see how far Mom is away from home and she said she'd try to use her magic..." She trailed off, not knowing how to continue explaining.

Jett glared at the two teenagers sternly. "Adora, you know that your father asked you not to try and use your powers anymore."

Adora, still crying, nodded. "I know, but I hoped they wouldn't even work! I'm sorry, Uncle Jett!"

Jett sighed and nodded as he ran his hand down the side of his face. "There's no use crying over spilled milk. We better get this fire out before it spreads."

Adora wiped her face and sniffed. "Uncle Jett, are you going to tell Dad?"

"No, but maybe you should."

Eve looked at Adora, who only shook her head sadly and walked over to the brush to start putting out the fire.

Aer watched and grinned as the three worked together to put the fire out. So, it appeared that the girl still had her powers after all, but didn't really understand how to work or control them properly. "This might come in handy," she observed with a smirk.


	15. Chapter 15

Part 15:

Andy was outside playing when he saw Red Fox galloping down the road. "Mom! Mom! Red Fox is back but Dad's not with him!" he shouted.

Melody came running from the house. "Oh Gods, no!" She ran over and grabbed the still-anxious Red Fox's reins.

"Mom, where's Dad?" the boy asked, his brown eyes wide as he watched his mother wrestle with the gelding.

Melody's hair flew around her face as she whipped her head in her son's direction. "Andy, go get your Uncle Joxer and Aunt Gabrielle!" she shouted hoarsely.

Andy, frightened by the tone of his mother's voice, immediately began running towards Gabrielle and Joxer's home.

When the boy returned with Gabrielle and Joxer, they saw that Melody had calmed down and mounted Red Fox. "The horse came back on his own. Something's happened to Jett! I'm going to go find him. Please watch Andy for me." She rode off before either adult could stop her.

Aer, who had decided to watch the mortals go back towards the oldest triplet's home, snickered when she saw Melody urge the horse into full gallop. "Well, well, well! So you're worried about your ex-assassin husband, you dimwit? Let's give HIM something to worry about for a change!" she sneered. Laughing wildly, Aer pointed her hands out and shot a lightning bolt through her fingertips in the direction of horse and rider.

Red Fox, terrified by the bolt, reared and whinnied loudly as the wide burst of electricity just missed him. Melody lost control of the frightened animal when he reared a second time and she lost her balance and fell from the saddle, hitting her head on a rock.

Jett, Adora, and Eve were trudging towards Jett and Melody's home when they saw the huge bolt of electricity and Jett saw his wife riding down the road - the bolt just barely missing Red Fox. With a loud shout, he ran towards them, only to see the gelding rise up a second time and throw Melody to the ground.

"MELODY!" Jett yelled as he ran over to her, dropping down to his knees with a thump. "No… No… Don't die, Mel! Please!" he whispered as he pulled her into his arms, trying to stop the bleeding from the cut in her forehead with a handkerchief he had stuffed in his pocket.

Eve and Adora exchanged glances, both of them pale with fright. Adora closed her eyes and went over to Jett, who was cradling his unconscious wife, who was breathing very shallowly.

"Uncle Jett..." Adora swallowed hard, summoning up her courage. "Let me try to help Aunt Melody. Please."

Jett's eyes slowly left Melody's face and refocused on his niece's. "What can you do?" he asked in a raspy voice, his face set in stone. A muscle moving in his right jaw was the sole betrayal of all the emotions he held in check.

"I don't know," Adora admitted. "But I want to try and heal her..." Her brown eyes filled with the tears that her uncle would never allow himself to shed before anyone else. "Please let me try to help her, Uncle Jett!" she whispered desperately, putting a gentle hand on her uncle's arm. "I can't promise anything, but I want to try."

Jett's face softened very slightly at Adora's sincere plea. "What do you want me to do?"

"Have her lie on the ground and move away..." Adora's voice trailed off.

Jett, understanding what his niece meant, nodded curtly and gently put Melody on the ground, trying to make her as comfortable as he could. He rose to his feet and silently beckoned to Eve. The two moved away as Adora knelt next to the unconscious woman.

Adora placed one hand near the hastily wrapped wound on Melody's head and placed the other over her heart. She closed her eyes and frowned in concentration. Her breathing became slow and very shallow.

Just then, Joxer, Gabrielle, and Andy came running into the clearing. "What is she trying to do?" Joxer gasped when he saw Adora kneeling next to Melody. He started to go over to the two, but Jett grabbed him by the forearms.

"Leave her be!" the oldest triplet snarled even as Joxer struggled in his grip.

"NO! You don't underst..." Joxer began saying when Jett clapped a hand over his mouth.

"Shut up and let her try to help my wife!" Jett growled in Joxer's ear.

Joxer continued struggling in his brother's grasp briefly then stopped, knowing it was useless. His dark eyes were filled with worry and fear for both his daughter and Melody.

Jett suddenly released his grip on Joxer, allowing him to move away and embrace Gabrielle as a silently weeping Andy ran into his father's arms. Jett picked the boy up and cradled him against his chest as the five-year old cried.

Gabrielle and Joxer turned their heads in Adora and Melody's direction and watched in silence. Eve stood next to Jett and Andy, wringing her hands anxiously.

Adora's face screwed up in concentration. A deep red flush appeared on her cheeks and sweat poured down her face in torrents. Her breathing grew almost imperceptible to the eye.

The small group watched in uneasy silence as Adora continued concentrating. Suddenly Joxer winced and staggered forward a step, his hand flying up to his forehead as Adora's lips twisted up in a grimace and her hands started glowing. Her eyes shot open, her head whipping up to face the sky. Her jaw dropped and a raw, primal roar ripped through the clearing as a bright light surrounded her and Melody's still body, forcing the others to shield their eyes.

As the light slowly cleared away and the group's eyes readjusted, Jett put Andy down on the ground and the two ran over to Melody and Adora.

"Melody!" Jett exclaimed as he fell to his knees next to his wife. He checked her over and saw that she desperately needed to be tended to by a healer - but she would make it. Her pulse was steady and strong where it was barely noticeable before. He whipped his head around when he heard Adora moan softly and saw that she had clamped both hands over her head and her face was twisted up in a horrible pain-filled grimace.

"DAD!" Andy screamed when Adora's eyes rolled up in her head and she fell backwards in a dead faint. Jett managed to grab her before she hit the ground and carefully laid her out. Eve ran over and helped him make her comfortable.

"D-D-Dorie!" Joxer stammered weakly, unsteadily lurching forward as he clutched at his head in the exact same spot where Melody had hit her head on the rock after being thrown from Red Fox.

"JOXER!" Gabrielle reached out and caught him before he fell and she forced him to sit down and hang his head. She knelt before him and patted his ghostly-white cheeks. "Joxer, look at me!" she exclaimed, noting with alarm that his eyes were glassy and uncomprehending. "Speak to me, damn it!" she demanded, gripping his shoulders tightly. It literally took all of her control not to start shaking him.

Joxer's eyes slowly regained their focus. "Gabrielle…" he mumbled.

"Are you all right?" Gabrielle asked, watching him worriedly.

Joxer blinked several times, his brow furrowing as the intense pain in his head started to subside. "Think so... I felt…" he murmured as he turned in the direction of their daughter. "Dorie?" His eyes widened in fright when he saw Eve hovering over her still body. He managed to rise to his feet but his legs felt rubbery and he began falling forward.

Gabrielle caught Joxer before he collapsed to the ground. She helped him sit down and exclaimed urgently, "You stay here! I'll check on Dorie, okay?"

Joxer nodded, putting his hand up to his throbbing temples as Gabrielle ran over to Dorie and Eve. She glanced over at Jett, her eyebrows rising in silent question. The bounty hunter grunted and she turned back to Eve. "Eve, go get Nikolas and tell him what's happened, all right?"

Nodding, Eve rose to her feet and ran off at top speed towards the healer's home.

Gabrielle turned back towards Adora, who groaned softly. Her face twisted up in an ugly grimace as she exhaled softly. Her eyelids fluttered halfway open.

"Dorie?" Gabrielle murmured, reaching down to stroke some strands of sopping wet hair away from Adora's creased brow. "Are you all right?"

"Nugghhh..." Adora moaned, her head tilting slightly. Her eyes slowly opened of their own accord and eventually focused on the worried bard's face. "Did..."

"Shhh," Gabrielle shushed her daughter. "Everyone's going to be fine," she said with a weak smile.

Adora's eyes squeezed shut when a spark of pain ripped through her head. A shaking hand moved up to her forehead. "I hope so," she mumbled. She tried to sit up but failed.

"Stay still until you get your strength back," Gabrielle admonished softly.

Adora nodded once. "Where's Papa?"

"Over here, Dorie," Joxer called out softly.

Adora turned in the direction of her father's voice and her eyes widened in shock when she saw how pale he was. "Mom, what happened?" she asked, pushing herself up on her elbows.

Gabrielle carefully helped the girl up to a sitting position and kept her arm around Adora's back. "I'm not sure," she admitted.

Adora accepted her mother's support gratefully, panting slightly from the exertion. She slowly turned towards Jett, Melody, and Andy and her eyes filled with combined tears of frustration and despair when she saw that her aunt was still unconscious. "It didn't work!" she exclaimed.

Jett looked up at the sound of his niece's voice. "It worked enough so that she didn't die," he rasped, his eyes staring intently into hers in silent thanks. He then turned his attention back to Melody, still keeping one arm placed around Andy's shoulders. "Eve's gone to fetch Nikolas."

Adora nodded, wiped her eyes and sniffled loudly. She watched as Joxer unsteadily rose to his feet and walked over to her and Gabrielle. She swallowed in sudden realization as Joxer sank down next to his wife. "Oh Gods... Papa... What did I do?" she whispered, a horrified expression appearing on her face. "I almost..."

"No, Dorie. I'm fine..."

"No you're not!" the girl retorted. She was about to say something else when Eve came running up to the group with the healer close behind her.

Keeping herself invisible to the mortals, Aer watched as the injured Melody was carefully placed onto a stretcher. "Unbelievable," she muttered, passing a hand over her brow. "It took all of my strength to divert Teutales' spawn from completely healing that mortal twit..."

The Goddess closed her eyes for a minute, taking the time to re-gather her energy. A smirk suddenly graced her lips as she watched the others rise to their feet and walk behind Jett and Nikolas, who were carrying Melody in the stretcher. The grin widened as her attention turned solely to Joxer's retreating form. "I know exactly where to strike now," she sneered.

Joxer and Adora quietly walked back towards their home after seeing that Melody was going to be okay. Joxer had his arm around his daughter's shoulders as they walked. When they arrived at the house, Adora stopped at the top of the stairs. "Papa...?" she asked in a tiny voice.

"Yeah, Dorie?" Joxer replied wearily. He was still tired from what had happened earlier.

"I attacked Eve," Adora admitted.

"Really? When was this?"

"Just before Aunt Melody got hurt. I couldn't control my powers, Papa." Adora felt the tears coming down.

Joxer gently turned his daughter to face him. "Are you saying that you used your powers to attack Eve?" he asked quietly.

"Yes sir."

Joxer stared at Adora for a moment before he spoke. He wanted the words to come out right so he wouldn't scare her. "Dorie, you and I are one. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Adora shook her head, frowning. "No sir."

"What I mean is that whenever you use your powers, I know. When they're really strong, something goes through me..." Joxer struggled briefly, trying to think of how to describe what he felt. "...like a bolt of lightning. I haven't felt that for a long time - and the only time I felt that today was when you were helping your aunt Melody."

"But Papa, I attacked Eve!" Adora exclaimed, her eyes wild with confusion.

Joxer shook his head. "Either someone else did and made it look like you did it or someone else figured out how to control your powers."

"Then it wasn't my fault?"

"No. I think one of the Gods might have done it."

"But why, Papa?"

Joxer sighed heavily as he looked at Adora. "I'm not sure why. Maybe they did it as some kind of a sick joke, Dorie. They do that sometimes."

"Well, it wasn't funny! I really could've hurt Eve."

"Yeah, I know, but some Gods don't have such a great sense of humor." He tilted his head upward and sniffed the air. "Hey, it smells like your mom cooked up something yummy. Let's go have something to eat," he said with a crooked grin.

Adora nodded but she knew her father was hiding something from her as they went inside to eat.

Melody woke up and saw two people smiling down at her. "Hi, Mama!"

Melody smiled back at her son and said in a low voice. "Hello Andy." She slowly motioned for him to come to her and he did so, burying his head into her bosom. She looked up at Jett. "I'm glad you're okay," she said softly.

"I'm fine. It's you that I'm worried about," Jett murmured.

"I'll be okay. It's not the first time I've fallen off a horse," Melody replied with a yawn.

"I know. I was just so scared. I've never been so scared before like that, Mel. The thought of losing you..." Jett hesitated. "I don't think I could have gone on," he whispered, turning away in embarrassment.

Melody ran her fingers through her son's hair. "Andy... Look at me, baby."

"Yes, Mama?"

"I want you to go out and play. I'm fine."

"Okay, Mama."

Andy gave her a quick kiss and ran outside. Once he was gone, Melody looked at Jett sternly. "Now you listen to me, Jett. I didn't die but if I had, you would have to go on for Andy's sake. The boy needs you. "

Jett couldn't face his wife. "I'm not sure if I could have, Mel. I love you."

Melody blinked hard, trying to keep awake. "And what about your son, Jett?"

That was when he turned back to gaze at her with haunted eyes. "I love him too."

"Then I don't ever want to hear you say if I died you can never go on because you have a son that needs and loves you very much. I'm still a little tired. I'm going to take a nap." Melody yawned once and closed her eyes.

Jett leaned down, kissed her and left the room.

That night after Adora and Eve went to bed, Joxer sat down beside Gabrielle. "Do you think I should tell Dorie?"

Gabrielle looked up from her scroll. "Tell Dorie what?"

"About her other grandmother and what she said to me about her - the war and everything."

"No. She's only sixteen."

"Gabrielle, I think the trouble is starting now. I think she needs to be told the truth about everything. It's not right to keep her in the dark like this anymore. It's getting too dangerous not to tell her."

"Wait until Xena gets home and then we'll ask her," Gabrielle replied.

"But what if Xena gets home and it's too late?"

"She won't," Gabrielle said reassuringly. "Joxer, please let's wait."

Joxer stubbornly shook his head. "No, I'm going to tell her! I'm not waiting for Xena. Adora is my daug..." Joxer stopped his ranting when he saw the look on Gabrielle's face. "I didn't mean that, Gabrielle. I'm sorry."

"I know, Joxer and please understand that I want you to wait for Xena because this involves Eve too, and Xena should be present when we tell the two of them."

Joxer nodded as he hugged Gabrielle against him. "I'll wait. I'm sorry and I love you."


	16. Chapter 16

Part 16:

Xena gazed at the campfire blazing before her wearily. It had been a long day of traveling at close to top speed for her and Argo. She glanced over at her faithful companion and saw that the mare was happily munching on some grass. Her lips curled up slightly and she stared down at the remnants of her dinner, the tiny smile transforming into a grimace.

She raised a hand up to her mouth to stifle a yawn and then stretched slowly to get the kinks from her back. Seeing that the fire was going down, she tossed a couple of logs into the fire and poked it with another stick to stir the embers. She then reached over for her sword, unsheathed it and got her sharpening stone from her pack. The sound of stone striking against metal was oddly comforting and she allowed herself to relax slightly.

The relaxed illusion shattered moments later as Xena felt the hair on the back of her neck rise and her head shot up, all traces of weariness leaving her body. She quickly rose to her feet, gripping her sword so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Her eyes narrowed and shifted back and forth, searching for something in the darkness. Her nostrils flared out and she growled under her breath.

Argo's head rose up in mid-chew and she snorted as she watched her mistress.

"Ares, come out! I can smell you," Xena growled, raising her sword up in a defensive position.

The darkly handsome God appeared in a flash of blue-white light, the faintest hint of a smile on his lips. "It's good to see you too, Xena," he scoffed.

Xena's eyes closed in exasperation. "What do you want, Ares?" She saw the glint in his dark eyes and whipped the sword out in front of her, its tip touching his vest. "Don't even think about it!" she snapped.

Ares raised his hands up in mock surrender. "Is all this really necessary?"

Xena's eyebrow rose.

Ares' amused manner immediately changed to a brisk and business-like countenance. "Fine, then." He paused, his own eyebrow rising in return. "I've gotta give old Morph some credit. He certainly gave you a rude awakening this morning," he observed.

"Your point, Ares?" Xena asked, pressing her sword-tip further into his vest.

Ares glanced down at the sword and then back up into Xena's face. "Wouldn't that be your point?" he asked.

Xena's eyes rolled as she lowered her sword and re-sheathed it, sighing as she did so. "Spare me the witty repartee! Why are you here?" Her breath caught in sharply. "Are..."

"Your precious daughter and your annoying do-gooder friends are safe - for the moment," Ares interrupted harshly.

Xena's hackles rose at his last words. "Ares..."

"What?"

"Tell me why you're here or leave! I'm not in the mood."

"Are you ever in the mood?" Ares quipped, leering. The leer quickly disappeared when the business end of Xena's chakram was suddenly pressed against the side of his face. "Your sense of humor really leaves much to be desired."

Even white teeth flashed in a wicked grin. "Personally, I've always thought that I've got a great sense of humor," she replied. Her face twisted up into a scowl. "Now start talking!" she demanded.

Ares' dark eyes glittered as he returned Xena's stare. Instead of saying anything, he flashed images into her mind, making her gasp and turn pale. When he was finished, he raised an eyebrow. "Well?"

Xena slowly lowered her chakram. "Get out of here!" she ground out through clenched teeth.

The dark God stared at her impassively. "Whatever you wish, my warrior princess," he said, sketching a sardonic bow in her direction before he disappeared in a blue-white flash with an accompanying thunderclap.

"ARES!" Xena yelled, throwing her chakram into the darkness. She heard the pieces split apart and ricochet against a couple of trees and a large stone before it came back together and landed in her outstretched hand. She closed her eyes as she replaced the weapon back at her hip with shaking fingers.

Argo whinnied and Xena turned around, walking over to the mare. She sighed as the horse butted her shoulder and then nuzzled her cheek. "I know, old girl. I know," she murmured, reaching over to scratch underneath Argo's chin. Her eyes turned back to where the God had been standing just moments before and she sighed again, shaking her head.

Hercules, Iolaus, White Dove and Aphrodite looked up curiously when Ares returned to camp with a furious scowl on his face.

"ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGH!" the God yelled. He held his right arm out and a huge fireball shot from his fingertips and whizzed over the group's heads to its intended target - a large boulder, smashing it to smithereens.

"HEY!" Aphrodite hollered, holding her arms over her head as the boulder's remains rained over their heads. She rose to her feet and stomped over to the angry War God. "I don't know what bee got in your bonnet this time, but like knock it off already!" she continued, poking Ares squarely in the chest.

Ares' lips turned up in a wordless snarl and he disappeared into the ether.

"OOO! He makes me so darn mad when he acts like a total putz!" Aphrodite mumbled under her breath as she snapped her fingers, immediately cleaning herself up. She turned to the others and a shower of pink and gold sparkles shot from her fingertips, also cleaning them up.

"Uh... Thanks again, Aphrodite," Iolaus murmured as he looked down at himself.

"It's all part of the service, Curly. Can't go traveling around with you mortals looking like a bunch of slobs! It would totally make my Goddess stock plummet just like that doofus Icarus did," Aphrodite said, dismissing Iolaus' thanks with a wave of her hand. She saw the scowl on Hercules' face and rolled her eyes. "Chill out, Herc! We've got more important things to worry about than Tall, Dark, and Grumpy's grody 'tude," she reminded him.

Hercules growled low in his throat but nodded as he turned to his friends. "Are you guys all right?" he asked with audible concern in his voice.

"We've been through worse," Iolaus replied wearily. White Dove signed her agreement, nodding.

"Isn't that the truth," Hercules said and chuckled ruefully as he squeezed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger, sighing. "I don't know about you two, but I'm beat and we've still got a long way to go," he added in.

Iolaus nodded and put his hand up to his mouth to hide a huge yawn. "Yeah," he mumbled.

"Be back in the morning, peeps! Gotta check in with Big Daddy and Hephie - plus I've got a massage scheduled too. 'Sides, there's nothing more boring than listening to mortals that snore loud enough to rattle the old homestead!" Aphrodite exclaimed with a giggle and disappeared in a whirl of pink and gold sparkles, leaving behind the scent of roses.

"She couldn't just leave without making a snide remark, could she?" Iolaus muttered, rolling his eyes.

"Hey! I heard that, Curly!" Aphrodite's voice echoed over their heads.

"Aren't you supposed to be somewhere more important?" Hercules asked, running his hand over his face in complete exasperation.

"Oh, all right! I'm like leaving already! Jeez!" the Goddess' voice whined.

The three silently waited for a few tense minutes before Iolaus asked, "Do you think she's gone?"

There was no angry response from the Love Goddess. Hercules shrugged his shoulders. "I guess so," he said.

The three friends exchanged glances and Hercules put out the fire while Iolaus and White Dove began laying out their furs to go to bed.

The fire crackled in the small fireplace as two people wrapped in each other's arms sat by it. For a long time, neither one of them spoke, both of them simply staring into the fire until one finally did break the silence. "I wonder how long we've got until..."

Pierre sighed. "Jace, please. Let's not talk about it. I'm sure that what happened today was just one of those things."

Jace turned to face Pierre and frowned. "If only it was, but it's not and you know it. Maybe I'm not like Jett and Joxer, but I know that something is very wrong. Tolly went crazy and killed his entire family and all of his neighbors - and now he's dead, too! Pierre, what if something like that happens to you or me?"

Pierre pulled Jace in tighter to his embrace and kissed his husband on the forehead. "Jace, you worry about the silliest things. That will never happen to us," he said reassuringly.

Jace shook his head. "How do you know that? Tolly was a decent man and look at what happened to him! Pierre, we have to leave! We have to get away from this!"

"How can we? I'm not sure what is happening, but I do know we can't run from it," Pierre pointed out.

"But we can't stay here either!" Jace said stubbornly.

"Jace, I know that you're scared but we must stay. We have to face whatever is happening with our family."

Jace sighed unhappily as he leaned his head against Pierre's chest. "I know you're right, Pierre." He paused for a moment before he whispered, "I don't want to lose you."

Pierre ran his fingers through Jace's hair. "You won't, my love. We'll face whatever's happening here together."

Adora lay on her bed staring up at the ceiling. Her mind was racing at what had happened during the day. Her attack on Eve... Her father said that someone must have controlled her somehow, but only a God could do that. Why would the Gods make her do such a thing? She knew she was not going to find the answer in bed, so she got up and walked over to her bedroom window. She was going to find out what was going on and she knew exactly who to ask. Adora slowly climbed out the bedroom window, trying to keep as quiet as possible so she didn't wake up anybody in the house.

"Ah! I remember when I used to climb out of windows on a regular basis. Hmm... I also remember climbing into windows," a merry voice observed just as Adora put her feet on the ground.

"Uncle Autolycus! You scared me," Adora gasped as she whirled around to face him.

Autolycus' dark eyes twinkled as he gazed at the teen. "So, my fine young lady... Exactly where are you headed to this time of night?" he asked, his eyebrow rising as he folded his arms over his chest.

Adora bit her bottom lip. "I'm going to go to Aphrodite's temple and try to see if she'll speak with me. I think that she'll answer my questions and not give me the runaround."

"Whoa there! Hold on a moment, missy! Now you know that I just can't let you go off like that! What would your parents say, not to mention what Gabrielle would do to me once she found out I let you go there?"

"You can't stop me! I'm going to go see her," Adora said as she started to walk away from him.

Autolycus grabbed her firmly but not roughly by the arm. "Oh no, you don..." he began to say as they stared into each other's eyes. His face lost all expression as he looked at her dumbly while Adora glared back at him angrily.

Adora's eyes suddenly flashed with an eerie orange glow. Autolycus' eyes rolled up in his head and he crumpled to the ground, unconscious. She stared down at his sleeping form and put a hand to her throbbing forehead. "I'm sorry, Uncle Autolycus, but I have to find out the truth," she mumbled, blinking several times to regain her focus. She hoped that she didn't knock him out for too long as she headed towards the Love Goddess' temple.

Eve stepped out of the shadows and looked down at Autolycus. After kneeling down next to him and checking him over, she saw that he was only sleeping. She quietly rose to her feet and followed Adora.

Adora slowly walked down the path towards the temple when Eve suddenly jumped out in front of her. "Eve! What are you trying to do, scare me to death?" she gasped.

Eve shrugged her shoulders. "Hey, Dorie... So, where are you off to?"

Adora scowled. "To find some answers."

Eve nodded in agreement. "Good. Then I'll go with you," she decided.

Adora couldn't look at her friend. "Eve... I might...You know..."

"What? Attack me?"

"Yeah," Adora mumbled.

Eve shook her head fiercely. "No way! That's not gonna happen, girlfriend. Now, come on! Aunt 'Dite owes us an explanation."

Joxer sat up with a start. Gabrielle rolled over and looked at him. "What's wrong?" she asked sleepily.

Joxer put a hand up to his forehead, wincing. "Adora used her powers."

All traces of sleepiness left Gabrielle as she sat up next to her husband, alarmed. "I see."

Joxer slowly got up and put on his shirt and breeches.

"Want me to go with you?" Gabrielle asked as he pulled on his boots.

"No. I won't be long."

"Okay."

Joxer went into Adora's room and saw that the shutters to her window had been pushed open and there was no sign of her. He glanced outside and saw Autolycus lying on the ground. With a muffled curse, he quickly went out the door to check on him. As he walked over to the unconscious man, Jett showed up.

"I think he's only asleep," said Joxer as he knelt down. "What are you doing out here at this time of night? Is there something wrong with Melody?"

"She's all right, Jox. I just couldn't sleep. I kept having these really bad dreams, so I decided to take a walk and get some fresh air," Jett replied as he knelt down next to his brother. "I think you're right. See if you can wake him."

Joxer nodded and gave Autolycus' face a couple of soft taps. Autolycus moaned softly.

Jett rolled his eyes. "Jox, just give him a good slap!"

"What? Are you nuts? I don't want to knock him out for real!"

"Oh, for crying out loud!" Jett's arm went back and he gave Autolycus a hard slap across the face before Joxer could stop him.

"Hey! Not the face! Not the face! What are you trying to do, knock my teeth out? I happen to like chewing my food!" Autolycus said as he slowly sat up and rubbed the spot where he had been hit. "Jeez!"

"Where's Adora?" Joxer demanded.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Joxer. Thanks for asking," Autolycus mumbled, still rubbing his face, which now sported Jett's handprint. "I always enjoy getting my brains rattled as a wake-up call."

"Look Autolycus, Jox asked you where Adora is," Jett growled.

"She went to see Aphrodite and I did try to stop her, but she put the whammy on me instead," Autolycus mumbled.

"Yeah, I know. Jett, I'm going after her."

Gabrielle ran outside. "Joxer, Eve's gone!"

"Don't worry, Gabrielle. She must be with Dorie. I'm going after them," Joxer said in a determined voice as he and Jett rose to their feet. He held his hand out to Autolycus and helped him to his feet.

Jett placed his hand on Joxer's shoulder. "You're not going by yourself. I'm coming too."

"And me as well," Gabrielle piped in.

"Gabrielle, please stay here just in case I'm wrong about Eve."

Gabrielle shook her head fiercely. "No, Joxer. I'm coming too! Autolycus can stay here just in case Eve or Adora comes back."

"Yeah, I can stay here," Autolycus immediately agreed, still looking a bit shaky from being the unwilling recipient of Jett's slap.

Joxer said nothing as he turned and headed down the path with Jett and Gabrielle right behind him.

Autolycus blearily watched the three depart before he turned around and unsteadily walked up the stairs into Gabrielle and Joxer's home to wait for their return.

The two girls arrived in front of the temple entrance and Eve's head rose up as she gazed at the doorway. "Okay, Dorie. Now what?" she asked.

"We go inside," Adora replied.

Eve's eyebrows rose. "Without an offering?"

Adora said nothing as she gazed down at her hands and closed her eyes.

Eve watched in worried silence as Adora frowned in ferocious concentration. Suddenly, the air around the two seemed to grow heavy for a moment and Eve watched as a box of candy that had a red satin bow around it materialized in the smaller girl's hands. Without a word, Adora opened her eyes and walked inside the temple with a determined expression on her face.

"Candy," Eve muttered as she followed her friend inside the temple. "Works for me."

Jett looked at Joxer, who gasped and slapped his hand over his forehead as he stumbled forward. "She used her powers again, didn't she?" He reached out to steady his brother.

"Yes, and it's giving me the father of all headaches!" Joxer growled as he got his balance back and the three hurried toward Aphrodite's temple.

Adora carefully placed the gaily-wrapped box of candy on the altar, making sure that she didn't knock over any of the day's offerings. She shook her head in silent amusement at the basket filled with fish, knowing just how much the Love Goddess despised the creatures. She turned around to face Eve, who was standing in the middle of the temple with her arms crossed over her chest, looking very much like her Aunt Xena.

"Well, now what?" Eve asked softly. "She's not going to show up if we pray for her to come."

Adora nodded. "I know. Maybe this will work." She cleared her throat, raised her head, and yelled, "APHRODITE!" at the top of her lungs. "APHRODITE!" Eve's voice combined with Adora's and they yelled for several minutes until their voices started to get hoarse.

There was no response from the Love Goddess.

Adora's shoulders slumped. "Mom said it works... Sometimes..." she mumbled.

"I don't think that us yelling at the top of our lungs is gonna get her attention, Dorie," Eve said. Her blue eyes glittered as she walked over to a very large and beautiful vase standing on a pedestal. "But this might," she added in with a grin as she reached out and pushed the object off.

"HEY! HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, KIDDO! NO MESSING WITH THE MERCHANDISE!" Aphrodite yelled as she appeared in a flash of pink light. Her finger darted out and a pink and gold lightning bolt shot from the tip. The vase stopped in mid-fall and hung inches away from the floor.

Aphrodite pointed her finger and the girls watched in stunned silence as the Goddess moved the vase onto a high shelf well out of harm's way and put her hands on her shapely hips. "Like what is it with you and the rest of your family, anyway?" she griped. "You peeps have no respect for other folks' property - MINE in particular!" She tapped a slippered foot on the temple floor impatiently. "This better be good! I do not like having my quality time with Hephie interrupted!"

She happened to notice the large basket of fish placed in with the other offerings and she groaned. "Oh no! Not again!" she exclaimed as she threw her arms up in the air in exasperation. "I so need a better training program for my priests! Chocolate and jewelry - GOOD! Fish - BAD!" She tossed her blonde curls over her shoulder and huffed. "So like whaddya want, anyway?"

Adora moved forward a couple of steps as she gazed at the unhappy Love Goddess. "We want to know the truth, Aphrodite," she said quietly. "My powers went out of control today and I nearly hurt Eve - and I want to know why. Dad said that maybe one of the Gods is trying to play a sick joke on me. We thought that you'd tell us the truth and not give us the runaround on why it happened."

Eve nodded in agreement. "Yeah," she said.

Aphrodite's left eyebrow rose. "As if!" she snorted. "Like what makes you think that I'd know? I can't keep tabs on everything that's happening!" she pointed out. "I'm busy enough as it is with the love-match gig!"

Adora and Eve exchanged glances. This was not going like she thought it would, Adora realized. "Please, Aphrodite. I have to know the truth! I'm scared that they might go out of control again and someone's really going to be hurt - or killed!" she pleaded, her dark eyes, so like Joxer's, wide with fright.

Aphrodite's beautiful face softened for a moment, but she shook her head and sighed wearily. "Listen, kiddo, you need to talk to Studmuffin, Miss Bard, and the Warrior Babe to get the total story."

"But they won't tell us anything!" Adora yelled, her eyes filling with frustrated tears. "I'm sick of being coddled like a baby! I need to know, Aphrodite!" Her hands clenched together in angry fists.

Eve put her hand on Adora's shoulder. "Calm down, Dorie. Yelling at her isn't going to get us anywhere." She shook her head and sighed. "She's not going to tell us a darned thing, are you?"

Aphrodite gazed at the two longtime friends before she said quietly, "Honey, it's not my place to spill the beans." She tilted her chin upward. "Is it, Studmuffin?" she continued, raising her voice as Joxer, Gabrielle, and Jett entered the temple.

Adora and Eve turned around and stared at the three adults in shock as they came to a halt before them.

"No, it's not," Joxer answered, putting a hand to his forehead for a moment.

"'Kay, then. I'm totally outta here! Later!" the Goddess exclaimed and left the temple in a shower of golden sparkles. The box of candy disappeared with her.

"Nice to know that Aunt 'Dite's got priorities," Eve grumbled. Gabrielle shot her a disapproving look and she blushed.

Adora could see a vein pulsing in her father's neck and he looked paler than normal. Swallowing hard, she looked at Gabrielle and Jett, who returned the gaze calmly before she dropped her eyes and looked down at the floor. "So, how much trouble am I in this time?" she mumbled. "Is Uncle Autolycus okay?"

"Uncle Autolycus will be okay, but his face may hurt for a while."

Adora gazed at her father, puzzled. "Papa, I didn't hit him."

"I know you didn't. Your Uncle Jett did to wake him up," Joxer explained.

Adora stared at Jett, who calmly returned the stare. "Remind me not to let you wake me up," she said.

"Adora!"

"Sorry, Papa."

Joxer ran his hand down his face and sighed loudly. "You know you did wrong. Don't you?"

Adora stared at her father, uncle, and mother. Eve silently watched her and knew she was getting angry by the look in her friend's eyes.

"No, I don't know! No one is telling me…" She quickly corrected herself. "…US… anything! Something bad is going on, I think it involves us, and nobody will tell us the truth! I had to come and ask Aphrodite, fat lot of good that did! It's not fair, Papa!" she exclaimed and burst into tears.

Gabrielle walked over to Adora and wrapped her arm around her shoulders. She glanced at Joxer, who nodded. "You're right, Dorie. It isn't fair to hold this back from you and Eve any longer. The two of you deserve to know what's going on."

"Then we should tell them."

They all turned around to see Xena standing next to the altar, Aphrodite at her side.


	17. Chapter 17

Part 17:

"MOM!" Eve cried out as she ran over to her mother. "I've missed you so much!" she exclaimed as she launched herself into Xena's arms and hugged her fiercely.

Xena's lips curled into a smile. "I missed you too, Evie," she murmured as she returned the hug.

They were quickly joined by Gabrielle, Adora, and Joxer, who yelled out, "GROUP HUG!" to much laughter.

Jett watched the reunion with a small smile on his face as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I'd call it more like a group squish," he observed. "Good to see you, Xena."

"You too, Jett," Xena replied.

"Hey, hey, hey! Normally there's nothing I like better than watching the little love-fest that's going on in here, people, but would you like mind taking it elsewhere for now? I've left Hephie waiting for too long as it is!" Aphrodite grumbled. "The wonder horse is parked outside, Xena. The kind of stuff she's got to offer is something I so totally don't want, need, or desire!"

"Thank you, Aphrodite, for bringing Xena home," Gabrielle said.

"Phhht! It was nothing, Miss Bardly! Just call it my good deed of the day - or middle of the night." The Love Goddess shrugged her shoulders, sighed expansively, and surveyed the rest of the group, shaking her head. "Later, peeps!" she said and disappeared from the temple in a wave of pink sparkles.

"C'mon. Let's go home," Joxer said quietly. He turned to Adora and Eve and gazed at them steadily. "This isn't the place to talk - and I think Xena would like to sit down and rest a little, too. She's come a long way."

The two friends exchanged glances and Eve nodded slowly. "We've waited this long. I guess we can wait a little longer," she agreed.

Adora opened her mouth to protest when Eve's eyes widened and she sighed. "Okay. I suppose you're right," she muttered grudgingly. "Let's go." She turned around and stalked towards the temple's entrance, the others following behind her.

Joxer closed his eyes and put his hand over the right side of his face, sucking in his breath through his teeth with a slight hiss. Gabrielle leaned over and murmured, "Are you sure that you're all right?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," Joxer replied quietly. "I've just got the headache from Tartarus, that's all."

"Joxer, I've got something in my saddlebag that should help," Xena said. She took a second, closer look at his face and frowned when she saw just how pale he was - much paler than normal - and she didn't like that strained expression he wore either. "This is going to be a very long night." Her eyes glittered as she took a closer look at Adora and saw that she didn't look too well either.

"A lot's happened since you've been gone - especially over the last few days," Gabrielle agreed. She watched as Xena got a small pouch from her saddlebag and pulled a couple of leaves from it before putting it back and turning around.

"I figured as much, Gabrielle," Xena said quietly. "Chew on a couple of these," she directed Joxer. Leading Argo by the reins, she then walked over to Adora and gave her a couple of leaves, giving her the same directive.

Joxer made a face at the bitter taste that spread through his mouth as he began chewing on the leaves. "Blech! What is the deal with stuff that makes you feel better tasting so awful?" he mumbled while the group walked down the path that took them into town.

"I dunno, bro," Jett said as he joined Joxer and Gabrielle. "I just hope that she's got a couple of those for Auto. He's gonna need them."

Joxer shook his head and sighed. "Did you really have to belt him like that?" he asked wearily.

"It worked, didn't it?"

"Good point. But still..." Joxer trailed off, knowing it was fruitless to argue with Jett. "Shouldn't you go back home and check on Melody to see if she's okay?" he asked, changing the subject.

"She's all right, Jox. Tired and sore, but okay. She woke up when I got up and I told her I needed some fresh air," Jett said. His face hardened. "Besides, I need to talk to Xena about the business with Tolly."

Joxer nodded and sighed. "I know," he replied as the group approached his, Gabrielle's, and Adora's home. He saw that Autolycus, who had heard the group's various conversations from the open window, was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest. He also saw that Autolycus had the beginnings of a spectacular bruise on his cheek and winced sympathetically.

"Hey! It's the return of the prodigal warrior mom!" Autolycus exclaimed cheerfully as he spotted Xena. "I thought you weren't going to be back here until sometime tomorrow night!"

"I had a little bit of help - courtesy of Aphrodite," Xena replied with a smirk as she tied Argo's reins to a convenient fence-post. "Good to see you too, Autolycus. That's a real nice-looking bruise, by the way. Black, blue, purple, and green suit your complexion very well," she added in dryly as she walked up the stairs.

Autolycus rolled his eyes and moved aside to allow the others to enter the house. "Very funny, Xena!" he said, favoring Jett with a glare as he walked by. Jett shrugged his shoulders eloquently but said nothing. He sighed and closed the door, joining the others as they sat down at the table.

Joxer looked at Adora. "All right then, young lady. Say goodnight then it's off to bed. We will talk in the morning."

Adora only nodded as she gave each of them a kiss goodnight and went into her room. Eve tried to hide a yawn behind her hand and Xena smiled at her daughter. "It looks like you better go to bed too."

"But I'm not sleepy!" Eve protested through another yawn.

"Yeah, I know, but go to bed anyway. You will have a big day tomorrow," Xena replied.

"Okay. Goodnight, all." Eve kissed them all goodnight and went into her room.

Once the girls were gone, Xena turned to her friends. "Okay... What's been going on around here? Any unusual or out-of-place events?"

Jett gave her a look. "Now that you ask, yes - something bad has happened. Do you remember Tolly?"

Xena had a drink of cool water before answering. "Yes, of course I know who Tolly is. He's one of the sweetest men that I know."

Jett drummed his fingers on the table. "Well, he's not anymore. He's dead."

Xena's eyebrow rose. "Dead? What happened?"

"He went berserk. He killed his family and all of his next-door neighbors. He then went on a rampage with his men, slaughtering an entire village's children. When I finally found him, all of his men apparently had turned on each other and he committed suicide." A muscle worked in Jett's jaw as he recounted the day's events. "We spoke briefly before he died and he acted like he was in a state of shock - that he couldn't believe what he had done."

Xena held up a hand as an expression of disbelief appeared on her face. "His men? Jett, he was a farmer, not a warlord."

Jett nodded grimly. "I know."

Xena stood up and walked over to the door. "When I was traveling back home, I kept having dreams about villages being burned to the ground and the people slaughtering each other. I had dismissed them as nightmares from the past but now I'm not so sure," she admitted as she turned around to face the others with a worried look on her face. She wasn't ready to tell them about the last nightmare she had, no thanks to Morpheus. Nor was she ready to talk about her subsequent encounters with Athena and Ares during the day because she knew it would alarm them even more than they already were. It had certainly unsettled her greatly and there was no telling what it would do to her friends if she told them.

Gabrielle got up and walked over to her friend. "Do you think that your dreams were some kind of a warning?"

Xena nodded. Joxer and Jett joined the two. "Then we've got to stop them before they become reality," Joxer said.

Xena nodded. "Yes, we do." Her eyes narrowed to slits. "And Eve and Adora are the keys to prevent them from happening."

Aer stood outside the window of Adora's room, fuming. "Damn, this is not going to plan! If they tell you and your bratty friend what's going on and you figure out how to use your powers to their full extent, we're finished. I've got to do something..." she thought out loud. Her lips curled into a sudden sneer as an idea came into her mind. "I know what to do..."

Aer knocked on one of the shutters, which were left partially open to let in some fresh air, of Adora's window. Adora turned over on her side but did not wake up. Aer growled low in her throat and threw a small stone towards the girl. The stone hit the wall next to the bed with a dull thunk.

Adora slowly woke up, disturbed by the noise. "What the heck was that?" she mumbled through a yawn as she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"Hey!"

Adora stared in shock when she saw Ioannes standing outside her bedroom window beckoning for her to come out. She pulled back the bedcovers then got up and walked over to the partially open window. "Ioannes, what are you doing here?" she whispered as she opened the shutters the rest of the way and leaned over the windowsill.

"I had to see you, Adora. I missed you."

Adora smiled a little at that. "I've missed you too, but you shouldn't be here."

"Adora, I'm going away and I want us to spend one night together. Please say you'll come with me!" he begged.

Adora's eyebrows disappeared underneath her bangs. "What? Ioannes, why are you leaving?"

"My folks are afraid. Father said that something bad is going to happen."

"What is going to happen?"

"I don't know. I just know that my folks don't want to stay here! Adora, if you love me, you'll come spend one last night with me!"

Adora shook her head in refusal. "Ioannes, I do love you, but I'm already in enough trouble with my dad as it is," she said gently. "I just can't go. I'm sorry. Now you better leave before you get caught out here." With her last words, Adora closed the shutters.

Aer transformed herself back into her normal form and stalked away, furious. She suddenly stopped in her tracks and turned around, staring at the closed window, eyes lighting up in a weird yellow-green glow.

"What's the matter, Aer? Your stupid plan didn't work again?" Abnoba's voice echoed mockingly in the furious War Goddess' head.

"Don't think that will stop me, Abnoba. If I can't make that brat come with me the easy way, I'll kill her here! It'll save us all a lot of trouble!" Aer suddenly raised her hand and shot a lightning bolt at the ground. It hit a spider that grew huge in size. "Now, my pet, destroy the person in that room," she directed the creature.

"AER, YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING TO HARM HER!"

"I'll do whatever I damn well want to, Abnoba, and if getting rid of Teutales' whelp is the only way to assure our success against that pathetic bunch of Olympians, I'll use any method that I please!" Aer snarled and began laughing hysterically as the gigantic spider crashed through Adora's window.

"What in Tartarus was that?" Xena gasped as everyone got up.

"It came from Dorie's room!" cried Gabrielle. In confirmation, the girl's loud and terrified screams suddenly echoed throughout the house.

Joxer slammed his hands over his head and let out an anguished cry before he fell to the floor.

Jett hurried over and knelt down next to his fallen brother. "Go check on Dorie! I'll see to Jox!" he shouted hoarsely. "Auto, give me a hand!"

Eve, woken up by all the yelling, came from her bedroom. "What's going on?" she demanded as the two women rushed by her, weapons at the ready. She went to follow them, but Autolycus grabbed her by the upper arms. "Let me go!" she yelled, struggling in his grasp. "Dorie's in trouble!"

"You stay here and let your mom and Aunt Gabrielle handle this," Autolycus said sternly.

Eve continued her struggles briefly, but stopped when she saw how much pain her Uncle Joxer was in. She stopped and Autolycus cautiously let her go, getting ready to grab her again if she decided to change her mind, but she didn't and instead walked over to Jett and Joxer and knelt beside them.

Both women rushed into the room and Gabrielle gasped in shock when she saw the spider hovering over Adora and spinning its silk around her body. "Gods!" she exclaimed. They could see the terrified teen struggling wildly underneath the webbing and her eyes glowed with a bright orange light.

"DORIE, STOP! YOU'RE KILLING YOUR FATHER!" Xena screamed at Adora as she rushed towards the transformed creature with sword raised over her head. "Settle down! Your mom and I will take care of this thing!"

Adora's mouth was covered with spider-silk so she couldn't speak but her eyes stopped glowing. They were huge and filled with tears. Gabrielle could hear tiny, muffled screams coming from her throat. She ran over to Adora and saw that the trapped girl could barely breathe through the silk. "Don't move!" she said, holding her sais up. Adora nodded, keeping her eyes on her mother as she began cutting the webbing away from her face.

Xena plunged her sword-blade fully into the spider's body. With a loud hiss, it turned around to face her, and she just barely managed to get out of the way before a black liquid shot from its mouth. The liquid hit the floor and burned a hole in it. With a loud cry, Xena whirled around and plunged her sword into the spider's body a second time.

Thankful for her longtime friend's distraction, Gabrielle used her sais to quickly cut Adora loose from the remainder of her bonds. "Now hurry and get out of here!" she exclaimed as she ran over to help Xena dispatch the huge spider.

Coughing and choking as she caught her breath, Adora ran from the room and out into the main part of the house to discover her father slowly sitting up, Jett and Eve kneeling beside him as Autolycus watched close by.

"Hey, take it easy, Jox!" Jett exclaimed.

"Wh... Wha... What happened?" Joxer asked weakly.

"It was my fault. I tried to use my powers to get away from that spider. I'm so sorry, Papa," she said shakily, still trying to catch her breath.

Joxer looked at his daughter. "I'm okay, Dorie. Are you okay?" he asked quietly. He slowly pushed himself to his feet, Jett and Eve ready to help in case he fell, but he managed to get up without their assistance. He shakily held his arms out and Adora walked over to him.

"I'm just so scared, Papa," Adora whispered as she embraced her father and put her head against his chest, closing her eyes. She shivered violently as she tried to calm herself down.

"Shhh. It's okay. I know you are, Dorie. I know," Joxer replied softly, kissing the top of her head. His stricken eyes met Jett's and his brother shrugged his shoulders, not knowing what to say. "Come on. Let's go sit down," he continued. He honestly didn't know how much longer he could stand up.

Adora nodded and the two slowly walked over to the table, where they sat down next to each other. She closed her eyes and leaned her head against Joxer's chest as he held her, stroking her hair and singing softly to her and that was the way that Xena and Gabrielle found them when they came out from Adora's room a few minutes later, having disposed of the enlarged spider.

"Joxer, is she okay?" Gabrielle asked softly as she walked over to her husband and daughter.

"She will be, Gabrielle," he murmured as she sat down next to Adora and put her hand on her daughter's shoulder. Adora turned around and embraced Gabrielle fiercely as Joxer wearily looked on.

Xena looked around the room worriedly before her gaze focused on the two men standing in the middle of the room. "Jett? Autolycus? Go get the others. I think it's about time that everyone knows what's going on," she said as she sat down at the table, Eve sitting next to her.

Nodding, the two left and re-appeared a short time later with Jace, Pierre, and Melody. Jett cradled a sound-asleep Andy in his arms. Xena rose to her feet and held up her hand as the others started to greet her. "I'm glad to see all of you, too, but I'm afraid that we've got some trouble to deal with. Big trouble."

The others nodded in agreement as they took seats around the table.

Aer continued laughing as she walked away from the house. "It'll serve the dumb little brat right once she dies, taking that stupid vessel that bore her when she breathes her last!" she gloated between her chuckles. "Now, let's see..."

"I wouldn't be so quick to brag about nonexistent victories, Aer."

Aer stopped in her tracks when she heard that soft and deadly voice. Her throat suddenly became dry as she slowly turned around to face Teutales, who was staring at her calmly with a raised eyebrow. "Just what do you think that you are doing?" he asked.

Aer's temper flared at the question. "Saving us a lot of trouble and you know it! That stupid little whelp..."

Almost-black eyes flared white-hot for a second before returning to normal. "That stupid little whelp will help us overthrow the Olympians," Teutales replied, not raising his voice.

"That stupid little whelp is too soft-hearted and weak-minded to do anything of the sort! Look at the vessel that you used to produce that weakling in the first place!" Aer shot back, her gray eyes taking on a yellow-green tinge again. She gasped when strong hands suddenly clasped her biceps and squeezed them hard. "Let me go!" she demanded, the glow in her eyes taking on a dangerous glint.

"The chosen vessel was a mistake, yes..." Teutales murmured thoughtfully as he continued gripping the younger Goddess' biceps. "However, that is of little consequence now. In the end, we will get what we want." He pushed her away from him and gazed at her disdainfully. "In the meantime, Aer, you will play by the rules that Taranis has set for you whether you want to or not."

"I want Abnoba off my back!" Aer shouted, completely flustered now.

Teutales laughed heartily at that. "I think not, Aer. Somebody has to keep you in line somehow," he observed. "Too bad it has to be her." The laughter faded as he stalked over to her, coming to a halt when the tips of his boots touched hers. She gulped nervously as he tilted his head down and snarled, "Never mess with what is mine again, Aer, or I'll make sure that your atoms are blown to dust and scattered across all the known universes!"

Aer's eyes were like saucers as she stared up into the handsome yet furious-looking War God's face and nodded fiercely. Her tongue darted out to wet too-dry lips.

"We have an understanding, then?"

More nods.

A dazzling, snow-white smile appeared on Teutales' face. "Good. I'd hate to have to do just that. You're good to have around in a fight," he finished, disappearing in a blue-green ball of light.

Aer stood in the middle of the field where Teutales had left her, silently fuming.

"Aw... Having a temper tantrum again because you didn't get your way? Poor baby! Aren't you ever going to grow up?"

"SHUT UP, ABNOBA, YOU DAMNED SNITCH!" Aer screeched. Her right arm shot out and she fired a thick lightning bolt, hitting a tree. She watched in grim silence as the tree burned and withered to ash in moments.

"I didn't have to say a thing. I'm not the only one that's watching you, in case you've forgotten," Abnoba's voice echoed in Aer's mind. "You were told from the start when you volunteered for this mission that you weren't to harm the girl. I'm surprised that Teutales let you off so easily, quite frankly. I wouldn't have been so merciful if I were in his place," she admitted.

"Just leave me alone!" Aer growled.

"As you wish, Aer," Abnoba replied lightly. There was a pause and the War Goddess no longer felt her rival's presence in the area. She turned around and gazed in the direction of Gabrielle, Joxer, and Adora's home.

"We'll see who wins in the end, mortal scum," Aer grinned, her eyes flashing with glee as another plan came into her mind. "We'll see." She turned around and disappeared into the ether in a white-hot flash of light.


	18. Chapter 18

Part 18:

Xena gazed at her friends wearily as they all looked at her expectantly. She sighed, hid a yawn behind her hand, and drummed her fingers on the table briefly before leaning back in her seat. She opened her mouth to say something when Adora slowly rose to her feet.

"Dorie, are you all right?" Gabrielle asked, her features etched in concern.

"I'm all right, Mom," Adora said with a weak smile of reassurance before turning to Xena, who looked up at her curiously. "I need to show all of you something before you begin," she said quietly, turning to face the others. "I'll be right back."

"Okay," Gabrielle replied.

Adora left the room briefly, heading for her bedroom. Joxer turned towards Eve. "Do you have any idea what it could be, Evie?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, Uncle Joxer. I have no idea," Eve replied, shaking her head. "The only thing I know is that something's been bugging her for a few months. Not too long after you left, Mom," she elaborated, turning towards Xena for a moment before turning back to look at her uncle. "I've asked her a couple of times, but she said it was nothing. I didn't believe her, but I didn't want to force her to talk either. I figured that she'd tell me when she wanted to." She slumped down in her seat and put her elbows on the table, cupping her face in her hands. "Maybe I should've anyway," she mumbled unhappily.

Joxer shook his head in disagreement. "You did the right thing, Evie, in not pushing her to talk about whatever is bothering her," he said. "She'd only resent you if you did."

Gabrielle nodded. "Joxer's right, Evie."

Eve looked at her mother, who nodded in agreement, and gave them a wan smile in response. "Thanks."

The group fell into an uneasy silence and waited until Adora reappeared a few minutes later with a scroll tightly clutched in her right hand. "Sorry I took so long, but it's kind of..." she trailed off as she sat down between her parents.

Xena and Gabrielle exchanged sheepish glances. "Yeah, we did end up trashing your room a bit, huh?" the taller woman admitted.

"More like a lot, Aunt Xena."

"ADORA!"

"Sorry, Papa."

"Hey! Calm down, Joxer!" Gabrielle exclaimed with a scowl and a sharp poke to his arm.

Joxer passed a hand over his eyes, trying to rub the weariness away from them. "It's okay, Dorie. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get upset with you. I guess all of our nerves are pretty raw at the moment," he admitted with a crooked smile, reaching out to pat her shoulder affectionately.

Adora returned the crooked smile, but it quickly disappeared. Her hands clutched the scroll so tightly that her knuckles turned white. "A little while after Aunt Xena left for Chin, I began having these terrible dreams," she said slowly. "At first, it didn't really bother me that much because we all have bad dreams once in a while, but they kept coming - and they kept getting worse." She paused, still looking down at the scroll she held in her hands. "I didn't want to tell anybody because they're only dreams, but they really scared me, too," she whispered.

Xena leaned forward, her beautiful face impassive as she stared at the visibly upset teenager. "What were they about, Dorie?" she asked quietly.

Adora raised her head and gazed at everyone in the room, biting her bottom lip nervously. "Maybe it's easier just to show you," she murmured. With shaking hands, she carefully unrolled the scroll and laid it out across the table with Gabrielle and Joxer's help.

The others rose to their feet and gathered behind Joxer, Gabrielle, and Adora to look at what the teen had drawn in perfect, portrait-like detail. Nobody said anything for a long time as they stared down at the parchment.

"Oh Gods..." Melody said in a choked voice, finally breaking the silence. Jett put his hand on her shoulder and sighed as he gazed down at the drawing.

"This has something to do with the two of us, doesn't it, Mom?" Eve asked, her eyes wide with disbelief as she continued staring down at the drawing. She looked up at her mother for confirmation and was surprised to see the worried expression on her face.

"Yes, Evie. It does," Xena replied with a single nod, her eyebrows furrowed together in concern as she gazed at her daughter. "Let's all sit down," she suggested. Her eyes caught Adora's and she smiled very slightly. "It's time the two of you got the whole truth - at least all that we know, at any rate."

Everyone returned to their seats and looked towards Xena again. She took a drink from her mug of water before she said, "I obviously don't have to explain the circumstances about how you were born," she said to Eve and Adora, who both nodded.

Xena's eyes caught Joxer's and he inclined his head forward. "What you don't know is why the two of you were born," she continued softly. She then turned her attention back to the two girls, who were staring at her intently.

"Shortly before Joxer and Gabrielle got married, a Goddess - your immortal grandmother, Dorie - appeared and told us that eventually there will be a war between the Gods of Greece and the Gods of Gaul. She also told us that Eve is the person who would stop the war and there would be peace between the Gods, but she wouldn't bring that peace through killing. Apparently, the time for that war has come," she told them.

Eve sat back in her seat and stared at her mother. "But you and Aunt Gabrielle taught me how to fight!" she sputtered after a few moments of shocked silence.

"Yes, we taught you how to fight - but just to defend yourself, not to kill." Xena's attention then focused solely on Adora. "You were born to protect Eve from her enemies, Dorie."

"But..." Adora turned in Eve's direction, but Eve was staring at her mother in shocked disbelief. She struggled with finding the right words to say. "Is that why my powers came back?" she asked finally.

Xena nodded. "Yes. That's exactly why they returned." She stared at Adora intently. "But how you use those powers can make all the difference between complete chaos or peace, Dorie - especially when it comes to a life and death situation."

"But I can't even control them!" Adora exclaimed. "What makes you think that I'll be able to protect Eve if someone goes after her - and what if they go out of control again?" Her eyes grew wide with fright. "Eve almost died today! What makes you think that I might not have an accident?"

"Dorie, honey. It wasn't you. Remember that I know every time you use them," Joxer broke in.

"I know all too well, Papa." Adora frowned then. "Then who was trying to make it look like I had tried to hurt Eve?" she asked.

"I don't know, but I don't think that it's any of the Gods we know," Gabrielle said. "Unless Strife's somehow been brought back to life."

Xena shook her head. "I don't think that it's him. Strife just liked to cause mischief for the most part. Whoever's been causing this mess is much more malicious in nature," she said. She looked at Adora, who appeared very troubled by what had been said. "I think that when the time comes, you'll be able to control them - and that you'll be able to make the right decision on how you use them. You have to have faith in yourself," she concluded. Joxer and Gabrielle nodded in agreement.

Adora shook her head, trying to take everything in. Her eyes met Eve's but all she could do was shrug her shoulders helplessly. "This is crazy," she murmured as she reached over to hug Joxer.

"It'll be all right, Dorie," Joxer said as he returned the embrace.

"How can it be?"

"It will be. I promise."

"We should get away from here," Jace said, looking around at the others.

"And where would we go?" Jett asked.

"I don't know, but... We can't stay here."

Pierre placed his arms around Jace. "Jett's right, my love. Where would we go? If the Gods are out to get us, they'll find us wherever we try to hide."

Xena let out a sigh. "No one is going anywhere. If we have to, we'll make our stand here. Nobody - God or mortal - is going to harm our children," she said, turning to Melody, Joxer, and Gabrielle. They nodded fiercely. She then turned to Jett. "I want you and Autolycus to go and bring back your mother, my mother, and Gabrielle's family first thing in the morning. I think that we all need to be together."

Gabrielle tapped Xena's shoulder. "My father won't come. You know how stubborn he can be - plus it's just before the harvest."

"Don't worry, Gabrielle! With my skills and Auto's charm, how can he refuse?" Jett replied.

Joxer rolled his eyes. "Jett, just tell him that his oldest granddaughter wants to see him."

Gabrielle gave a faint smile. "I should've thought of that. Joxer, you can be so smart when you want to be... Not that you're not smart most of the time," she quickly added in.

"I understand what you're trying to say, Gabrielle," Joxer replied, returning her smile with one of his own. He leaned over and kissed her affectionately. "So, what's the plan?" he asked, turning back to Xena.

"The only plan I have right now is to do what he's doing," Xena replied as she rose to her feet, pointing at the still-sleeping Andy. "Seriously though," she said over the soft laughter, "we'll need all the rest we can get." She smiled when Eve rose to her feet and walked over to her. "We've got a lot to do tomorrow. It's a good thing that the two of you don't have school." She frowned at the troubled expression on her daughter's face. "Are you all right?"

Eve put her arm around her mother's waist and leaned her head against Xena's shoulder. "Uh huh. It's just a lot to take in, that's all."

Xena kissed Eve's forehead. "I know, Evie. I know." She squeezed her daughter to her. "Go get some sleep, huh? I'll see you in the morning."

"Okay," Eve replied softly, returning the squeeze. "Goodnight," she said to everyone.

"Goodnight," the others said and Eve walked back to her bedroom. Adora kissed her parents goodnight and followed behind her friend.

"Well, might as well try to catch some Z's then," Autolycus said, yawning as he stretched. "See you in the morning."

"Night, Auto," everyone said as he walked out the door.

Jett - still carrying Andy in his arms, Melody, Jace, and Pierre followed him, leaving Xena, Gabrielle, and Joxer standing in the middle of the room with grim expressions on their faces.

"I always hoped that this wouldn't happen," Joxer said softly.

"I think we all hoped that in the back of our minds," Xena replied. She searched his weary face carefully. "How are you holding up? You never used to be so affected when Dorie used her powers before."

"I'm okay," he said. "I'm tired more than anything else."

Gabrielle shook her head. "Xena's right. You never got like this before," she said to her husband before turning towards her friend. "Could it be because Dorie hasn't used her powers in so long that whenever she tries to use them that it overloads the connection they have?" she asked curiously.

Xena shrugged her shoulders. "I'm no expert in something like this, but it's possible." She rubbed the back of her neck. "In the meantime, let's get some sleep," she murmured. "I'm beat."

Gabrielle hid a yawn behind her hand. "Best idea I've heard all night," she agreed. "Night, Xena."

"Goodnight, you two," Xena replied as she walked to the second spare bedroom to get some much-needed rest.

Joxer quietly put out the fire in the fireplace while Gabrielle blew out the candles. They walked into their bedroom and quickly got ready for bed. After they settled under the bedcovers, the couple snuggled in each other's arms.

Joxer let out a long sigh as Gabrielle gently pushed a lock of hair away from his eyes. "Are you feeling all right?" she asked, allowing her hand to slide down his cheek and come to a stop there.

Joxer didn't answer her right away, but simply gazed at her for a few moments before replying. "I'm okay. I'm just worried - and a little scared," he admitted.

"We all are, Joxer. We all are, but it'll be fine," Gabrielle murmured reassuringly, but what she felt inside was anything but reassured.

"I sure hope so, Gabrielle."

Gabrielle smiled as she kissed her husband. "I know," she replied as she put her head on his chest. "Night, Pookie."

"Night, Gabrielle," Joxer whispered. "Love you."

"Love you too."

Joxer gazed out the open window for a while in silent thought before he finally fell asleep too, cradling Gabrielle in his arms.

Morning came, and feeling much better, Melody was fixing breakfast.

Andy sat at the table watching his mother. "Mama?"

Melody looked up from slicing the warm flatbread she had just finished baking a short while ago. "Yes, Andy?"

"Is Dad going away again?"

"Yes, Andy, but he'll only be gone for a short time. He and Uncle Autolycus are going to go and get your grandmother, Gabrielle's family, and Xena's mother." She finished cutting up the flatbread into portions and then walked over to the pantry to get a round of cheese covered in cloth.

"But why, Mama?"

Melody turned around and put the cheese on the table. "Don't you want to see them again?" she asked, her eyes twinkling as she gazed at her son.

"Yes, Mama. I do. Will Lennox be with them?"

Melody smiled. "Of course he will, honey."

"Yay! I can't wait to see him!" Andy suddenly got off his chair and ran towards his parents' room. Melody shook her head and smiled indulgently as she watched him leave with a loud clatter.

Andy ran into the bedroom and saw that Jett was just pulling on his boots. "Dad, may I go with you?" he asked breathlessly.

Jett looked up at his son. "Go where?"

"With you and Uncle Autolycus to get everyone! I want to see Lennox."

"Don't you want to see your cousins Sarah and Aimee as well?" Jett asked as he finished pulling on his boots.

Andy made a face that Joxer used to make when he didn't like something when they were kids and he tried not to laugh. "I see enough girls! Please? Can I come?" the little boy begged.

Jett stood up and picked up his son in his arms. "Not this time, son. We'll be back soon, though."

Andy said nothing. Jett knew his son was disappointed. "Hey, cheer up! Think of all the fun you and your cousins are going to have."

"Okay, but just Lennox - not Sarah or Aimee," the boy said stubbornly.

Jett gazed at his son sternly. "Andreas, there is nothing wrong with Sarah or Aimee," he said quietly.

Andy knew that his father was not pleased with the way he was acting and he lowered his eyes. "I'm sorry. Didn't mean it."

Jett sighed and ruffled his son's blond hair affectionately. "I know that it's kind of tough not having too many boys your age to play with around here, Andy, but that's no reason not to be nice to Sarah and Aimee, either."

"I know. I like them - most of the time, 'cept when they want to play house. Yuck!" Andy made another face.

This time, Jett couldn't hold back his laughter. "Do you want to have some breakfast?" he asked.

Andy's face lit up at the question. "Yeah! I'm real hungry."

"Me too. Let's go eat." With those words, Jett carried his son into the kitchen. "Hey Mel, you've got two hungry men here."

Melody laughed. "Well, my two hungry men, breakfast is ready."

After eating his breakfast and saying goodbye Jett saddled up Red Fox and went to find Autolycus. "Hey Automan! Are you ready?" he called out cheerfully as he spotted Autolycus just finishing saddling up his gray stallion.

Autolycus came over, scowling. "Yeah, I'm ready. Will you stop calling me that? Just because Andy couldn't say my name correctly when he was just beginning to talk doesn't give you license to do the same thing! Sheesh... It sounds like some kind of... Stupid hero's name..."

Jett grinned wickedly as he watched Autolycus mount his horse. "Whatever you say, Automan." He laughed at his friend's soft grumbling before sobering up. "Okay, I think we should go get Cyrene first because Amphipolis is closer, then off to Poteidaia for Gabrielle's family and then Mom on the way back home," he decided.

"What about Meg?"

Jett's eyebrows rose as he mounted Red Fox. "Meg... What about her?"

"Hey! She's a friend too, huh? I think we should bring her here as well," Autolycus said as he made a clicking noise. The gray stallion immediately began trotting down the road.

Jett had Red Fox follow Autolycus and he shook his head as they rode side by side down the road. "Xena never said a thing about her."

"Yeah, I know. Maybe it just slipped her mind, what with all the bad mojo that's been going down," Autolycus said.

"Yeah, I suppose so. Okay. We'll get her too."

"And her girls."

Jett sighed. "Yeah - and her girls, too. Boy, Mel's just going to love this."

The two men rode into Amphipolis and looked around. The normally bustling town center appeared to be deserted. Wind blew shutters open and slammed them shut, giving the place an eerie feeling.

"What do you think happened here?" Autolycus asked worriedly as he got off his horse and looked around.

Jett frowned as he dismounted Red Fox. "I'd say by the looks of it, everyone's just picked up and headed for the hills."

"Well, not everyone. Look." Autolycus pointed over towards Cyrene's tavern, which appeared to be open for business.

"Come on. Looks like she's still here," Jett replied.

Both men headed over to the tavern, tying their horses' reins to the nearby hitching post and went inside, where some patrons were sitting at tables, talking quietly amongst themselves as Cyrene served them. She looked up when she heard them come in. "Autolycus! Jett! What are you two doing here? Is Xena all right? How's Eve?" she asked anxiously as she walked over to them.

Autolycus went over to her and gave her a hug. "Everyone is fine. We came to get you."

"Get me?"

Jett nodded. "Yes. Xena sent us to get you. There's going to be a terrible war against the Gods of Greece and Gaul and she wants you safe."

Cyrene turned and looked at her patrons. "I can't just go up and leave! The few people who've stayed behind need me."

"You can't stay here because you're not safe if you do!" Jett said sharply.

Cyrene's blue eyes narrowed dangerously and she jabbed her finger into the middle of Jett's chest, surprising him. "Now you listen to me, Jett! I'm not leaving my friends behind. We all decided to stay and I'm not abandoning them to Gods knows what."

"Cyrene, it's not safe here. The only safe place is with Xena. Please come with us," said Autolycus.

"Not without my friends!" Cyrene said firmly.

"Now I know where Xena gets it from," muttered Jett as he rubbed over the spot where Cyrene had poked him. "All right! Everyone who wants to come can but hurry and get your stuff together. Only bring what you need, people! We don't have the time for you to pack up everything!"

"What about our children?"

"By the Gods, we're not telling you to leave the rug rats behind to fend for themselves, for crying out loud! Go get them, already!" Autolycus exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation. "Make tracks, people!" he yelled as everyone departed the tavern.

Jett looked at Cyrene and Autolycus. "Can you two supervise these people and get them back home? I want to head to Poteidaia and get Gabrielle's family then get Mom."

Cyrene and Autolycus exchanged glances. "Yeah, but why?" Autolycus asked.

"Auto, we can't take all these people to Poteidaia with us, plus you know that I'm going to need some time to persuade Gabrielle's father to leave his home."

Cyrene rolled her eyes and nodded, knowing exactly just how stubborn Herodotus was going to be. "I'll just grab a few things. Be right back."

As Cyrene headed out back to pack up some essentials, Autolycus turned around to face Jett, who was heading out the door. "Okay, then. Jett, don't forget Meg!"

"I won't," Jett said. He paused for a moment in the doorway. "Be careful."

Autolycus gave him a crooked smile in response. "Aren't I always?" Jett gave him a look and he chuckled. "I will. You be careful, too."

"Thanks," Jett replied and walked outside as Cyrene came back into the tavern with a small pack in her hands. They watched in silence as Jett got on Red Fox then rode off in the direction of Poteidaia at full gallop.

"Let's get these people going," Cyrene said softly and the two exited the tavern to supervise the small group that had decided to stay behind.

By midday, everyone was packed and ready to go. Autolycus rode up in front of the small caravan and yelled, "Wagons ho!" He had his horse go into a fast trot and the group followed behind him.


	19. Chapter 19

Part 19:

Jett arrived in Poteidaia close to midday. Like Amphipolis, the town appeared to be deserted. Growling under his breath, he headed to Lila and Lecter's homestead, not stopping until he was nearly at their door. Hearing the hoof-beats, Lila came out, Sarah, Aimee, and Lennox following her.

"Uncle Jett!" Aimee, a pretty little girl with sparkling green eyes and dark hair called out as she came running over to him while he dismounted from Red Fox.

"Hi kids," he said with a halfhearted smile as they gathered around him excitedly. "Hey, Lila."

"Hi, Jett." Lila saw the look in her brother-in-law's eyes and the smile faded from her lips. "This isn't a social call," she said with a small sigh. "It's getting worse, isn't it?"

Jett nodded. "Xena and Gabrielle want you to come to our village so you'll be safe." He looked down at the three children and smiled. "How would you like to see the rest of your family?"

"Yay! I get to see Andy!" Lennox cried out excitedly. "Let's go!" He ran back into the house, the girls following behind him.

The smile fell from Jett's lips as he faced Lila. "Where's Lecter?"

"Out helping Father in the fields. Jett, you're going to have a rough time convincing Father to leave. We tried to convince him before when everyone else was leaving town but he wouldn't listen to us. We decided to stay behind and help him and Mom out," Lila said with a sigh.

"I know. Can you get ready to leave? I still need to get my mother - and Meg and her girls..."

Lila's eyebrows shot up at Jett's last words. "Sure. The kids can help me get the wagon and horses ready. But... Meg and her girls?"

Jett nodded as he mounted Red Fox. "Long story, Lila!" he yelled over his shoulder and giving her a single wave as he had his horse go off in a full gallop.

"Be careful!" Lila yelled back, returning the wave. She lingered for a moment in the front yard, watching him riding down the road. Shaking her head, she then hurried into the house to start packing.

As Jett approached Herodotus' and Hecuba's home, he saw that Gabrielle's father and Lecter were heading towards the house for some lunch. The two men stopped and turned around to see who was coming while Hecuba exited the house. He had Red Fox come to a halt and he nimbly dismounted the chestnut gelding.

"Hello Jett," Herodotus greeted him warily as he approached.

"No time for small talk, I'm afraid," Jett replied, deciding not to mince words with the older man. "We've got trouble and Gabrielle wants you to come with..."

"You mean that woman wants us to come!" Herodotus growled, rudely interrupting Jett. "This is my home and I'm not leaving the crops to rot!"

Before Jett could say a word in response, Hecuba surprised everyone and spoke up. "Herodotus, stop being so stubborn because you know that the longer that we stay here, the more danger we're in! I'd rather take my chances in dying with all of my family and friends around us rather than trying to survive on our own here! I'm leaving - with or without you - today! Put your stupid grudge against Xena aside and listen to reason for once in your life! It's madness to stay here!"

"She's right," Lecter said. "I'm not keeping Lila and our children in danger any longer. We're leaving Poteidaia today."

"And so am I!" Hecuba angrily added in. She turned around and went back into the house to pack a few things.

Herodotus stared at Hecuba in wide-eyed amazement as she stormed inside the house for a moment before he turned around to stare at the two younger men, who calmly returned the stare.

"Are Lila and the kids getting ready?" Lecter asked.

Jett nodded. "I stopped by your home first. They should be ready to go by the time you get there." He turned towards Herodotus. "I think that Dorie would be very disappointed not to see you with the rest of the family," he said, gazing at the older man intently.

Herodotus' eyes softened at the mention of his oldest granddaughter. "Then I shouldn't disappoint her, should I?" he asked after a short silence. He nodded then and headed into the house to help Hecuba pack.

Lecter grinned at Jett before he began walking towards the barn to get the wagon and two workhorses.

Jett shook his head in amazement. "Well, I'll be damned. Bro actually was right," he murmured as he followed Lecter into the barn to help him get the horses and wagon ready.

With Jett and Lecter's help, Gabrielle's parents were ready to leave quickly. As Herodotus came out with the last of the possessions they were taking with them and put them inside the wagon, Jett took Lecter aside. "Do you have anything in case...?" he murmured.

Lecter nodded. "Yes, I still have my sword from my time in the army. I'll make sure I bring it along in case we get attacked by highwaymen." He watched as his father-in-law headed back inside the house and began closing all the window shutters. There was a pause and then he said, "You just be careful on the road."

"Don't worry. I'm always careful. I'll see you all in a couple of days," Jett said as he mounted Red Fox.

Hecuba hurried out the door, clutching a small package in her hands. "Jett, wait! I made you something to eat."

Jett took the parcel from Hecuba with a tiny smile at her thoughtfulness. "Thanks. Now you all better get going and have a safe trip."

"You too," Hecuba said and she walked over to the wagon.

Jett nodded and waved to the three before he had Red Fox go into a full gallop.

It was late in the day when Jett arrived at the hilltop overlooking the village his mother now lived in. His eyes hardened and he cursed softly when he saw smoke rising up into the sky. He reared Red Fox up and then galloped down towards the village. As he rode into the devastated village center, Red Fox grew nervous from the lingering smoke-filled air and his ears lay back against his head as he whinnied.

"Easy, boy!" Jett said, reaching down to pat the gelding's neck in reassurance. His eyes flicked over to the left and he saw the badly burned body of a man lying on the ground. His heart leapt into his throat at the gruesome sight. "Oh no! Please, no!" he muttered as he had Red Fox race towards his mother's home on the opposite side of the village, cursing himself for not getting there faster.

As Jett rode up to the house, he saw that the main gate had been destroyed. He had Red Fox carefully walk around it and came to a halt when he saw the remains of his mother's home. One figure stood before it, and Jett saw to his relief that it was Jezda. He leapt off the horse and ran over to her. "Mother! You're all right," he said as he hugged her.

Jezda only stared at the smoldering remains of the house and whispered over and over, "Tout allé. Tout est allé..." All gone. Everything is gone.

Jett moved back so that he held his mother gently at the shoulders. He didn't like the blank look on her face nor the dullness in her dark eyes - and when she lapsed into her native tongue like that... "Mother, do you know who I am?" he asked urgently, barely managing to suppress the urge to shake her back to reality.

Jezda blinked as she stared at Jett, the blank and dull expression in her eyes slowly fading away. She reached up to gently run her fingers down his cheek. "Un de mes bébés... Vous êtes Jett..."

Thank the Gods, he thought and sighed as he pulled her close to him again. "Yes, Mother. I'm Jett. Do you know what happened?"

Jezda raised her head to look up into the sky and shivered against her oldest son. "Fireballs from the sky. Some died. Some managed to escape and left," she replied - this time in her softly accented Greek, to Jett's infinite relief.

Jett continued to hold her against him, wondering why she didn't leave with those who managed to escape. "Mother, I came to take you to our village. You'll be safe there."

Jezda shook her head. "No one is safe, my son, from the wrath of the Gods. All is lost."

Jett ran his fingers through her hair. "I promise that you'll be safe there." He raised his head to look at the smoldering remains of her home again and frowned. "Mother, where's Agatone and his wife?"

"Gone."

"Gone? Do you mean that they're dead?"

Jezda shook her head. "No, just gone. I told them to leave, and they left two days ago."

Jett nodded but he knew that Hemes' nephew and his wife had to be dead. They were too loyal and never would leave Jezda behind to fend for herself when there was trouble, especially trouble like this. She must've seen them get killed and she was still in shock, he thought silently. He looked up at the sky and then back down at her. "Mother, we have to leave here. Do you need anything?" he asked softly.

Jezda slowly withdrew from her oldest son's embrace and walked over to Red Fox. "I have nothing left. The Gods took it all. Help me up, son, and let's leave this place."

Jett joined his mother and carefully helped her onto the horse, then got on behind her. "YAH!" he yelled and Red Fox galloped off in the direction that would eventually take them to Meg's place.

They did not look back at the smoldering remains of the village.

Hercules, Iolaus, White Dove, and Aphrodite walked down the road that led towards the village their friends resided in troubled silence. There was a sudden flash of blue-white light beside the Love Goddess and Ares appeared next to her with a huge scowl on his features.

"Nice of you to join us," Iolaus mumbled.

White Dove glared at her husband, who shrugged his shoulders.

Ares merely raised his eyebrow at the smaller man before dismissing him with a derisive sniff and turning his attention back to the road.

Hercules shook his head and sighed, his eyes briefly meeting Aphrodite's. The Goddess made a face and rolled her eyes. She then made a 'his nose is out of joint' gesture. Hercules' lips twitched briefly in a slight smile.

"I saw that!" Ares growled, turning his head towards the blonde Goddess. "Keep your opinions to yourself!"

Aphrodite's blue eyes widened innocently as she returned the War God's gaze. "Who said I was like offering my opinion? I'm so stating the cold and hard facts, Bro. It's not my fault you totally struck out with the warrior babe lock, stock, and barrel again!" she ended with a giggle.

"Just shut up!" Ares muttered, his fists clenching together.

"Ooo! Way harsh with the grody 'tude," Aphrodite replied, still giggling.

"What? Wait a minute! You saw Xena last night?" Hercules asked, coming to a halt in the middle of the path.

Ares stared at his half-brother with contempt in his dark brown eyes. "Is your brain stem so tiny that you have a constant twenty-second time delay before you comprehend the most basic of sentences?" he asked. "Yes, I saw her last night."

Hercules' eyes narrowed, but surprisingly - and to the others' relief - he didn't rise to the bait. "What for?" he asked calmly. "Is she all right? Where is she?"

Ares' eyebrows rose up. "Wow. Three questions in a row. I'm impressed."

Before Hercules could retort a response, Aphrodite stepped between the half-brothers. "Both of you take a chill pill like RIGHT NOW! See that tree over there?" Long, delicate fingers waved in the direction of a very large tree a short distance away from the group. "It's so gonna become your new best friend - in more ways than one!" To emphasize her words, gold sparkles began shooting from her fingertips. "Now, are you two like gonna play nice or do I have to get rough?"

Ares glared down at Aphrodite. "Not worried about your idle threats." A tiny bluish-white spark emitted from his index finger and hit the ground with a sizzle.

"IDLE THREATS, HUH? I'LL SHOW YOU IDLE, YOU BIG GROUCH!" Aphrodite yelled, reaching back to throw a pink fireball at the War God.

Ares grinned wickedly as a fireball appeared in his own hand. "Bring it on, sis!" he crowed.

White Dove and Iolaus exchanged glances, reached out, and pulled Aphrodite aside before she could make the first strike while Hercules grabbed Ares and held the God's arms behind his back. "We don't have time for this!" he snarled angrily into Ares' ear as the God tried to pull away from his grip.

Aphrodite pulled herself away from Iolaus' and White Dove's combined grasp and ran her fingers through her curly blonde hair as she glared at Ares. "Big Bro's right - we don't have time to argue," she said. "Besides-" she added in as she snapped her fingers and restored her outfit and hair to pristine condition, "- the Warrior Babe's back home safe and sound anyway."

Ares felt Hercules' grip relax and he pulled away from his half-brother. "She is?"

The Love Goddess nodded. "Yeah! I did it myself!" She didn't mention the reason why Xena got home via Godly means as she turned her gaze towards Hercules and added in archly, Some mortals don't mind using an easier mode of transportation when the sitch calls for it!"

"Can we just get out of here?" Iolaus asked in a weary voice, watching as Hercules rolled his eyes heavenward.

"Fershure, Curly! Let's like blow this Popsicle stand already!" Aphrodite agreed cheerfully and she began walking down the path, the others following her with the exception of Ares, who stayed in the spot that he was standing in, glowering at his sister. He looked down at his open hand longingly.

"Don't even think about it, Bro!" Aphrodite trilled, not even bothering to turn around to glance back at him. She giggled as she looked up at Hercules and asked him a question.

Ares growled low in his throat as his fists involuntarily clenched together. His nostrils flared as he closed his eyes in a struggle to keep his temper and he jogged forward to catch up with the others.


	20. Chapter 20

Part 20:

As Jett slowed down as they rode towards the village that Meg and her girls were last reported, his mother held onto his waist tightly. "Why are we here, son?" she asked curiously.

"I promised a friend that I'd pick up Meg and her girls," he explained.

Jezda sighed. "I see," she murmured.

Jett came to a stop in front of Meg's tavern/brothel, dismounted and looked up at his mother. "Mother, I'm going inside and I'd like you to come with me."

Jezda shook her head. "No. I do not want to go into such a place."

"Mother, please! In spite of what she does, she's not a bad person!"

"Non, non, non! Je n'entre pas là!"

"Mother!" Jett exclaimed, closing his eyes as he tried to keep his temper under control.

"Hey! What's going on out here? Joxie! Good to see ya!" a cheerful voice called out.

Jett turned around and gave Meg a look.

The Xena look-a-like's nose wrinkled as she quickly realized her mistake. "Oh. It's you, she said flatly. "Whaddya want here, Jett?"

"I don't have time to explain. Just get your girls. We have to go," he answered curtly.

Meg put her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Nuh uh! We're not going anywhere until you explain what's going on!"

Jezda slid off Red Fox's saddle and marched over to Meg. "Now you listen to me, you hussy! My village and home were destroyed by the Gods. So if you don't want it to happen to you also then you better do as my son says!" she snapped.

"Mother... Enough!" Jett's patience, already thin from his long ride and worrying about what he might be coming back home to, was on its last thread and he was ready to explode.

Meg stared at the older woman and then turned back to face Jett. "Okay. Give us at least an hour to get ready. In the meantime, why don't you come in for a drink and relax a bit? You look like you could use it."

Jett shook his head. "Thanks for the offer, but no time for a drink. I'll help you get ready."

"No! I will help them, Jett. We will be ready soon. Come along, Meg," the older woman said haughtily.

The two watched in silence as Jezda walked inside before Meg turned to stare at Jett. "Did she call me a hussy?"

Jett nodded wearily. "Uhh... Mother isn't quite herself at the moment," he murmured by way of apology.

Meg made a rude noise, rolled her eyes, and shook her head as she followed the smaller woman inside the building.

Jett exhaled loudly and made a quick inspection of their surroundings. From what he could tell, there was no sign of any trouble but it appeared that everyone else who lived here except for Meg and the girls were gone. He made a mental note to ask her about it later.

Walking inside Meg's place, he saw that his mother had calmed down considerably and was helping everyone get ready. Seeing that one of the girls was having trouble carrying a heavy sack, he went over to help her. Jezda saw him and nodded. Jett breathed a silent sigh of relief and continued to help the girl out before going outside to get the horses and wagon ready.

With their combined help, everyone was ready to go in a short while. This time, Jezda rode in the wagon with the girls while Meg rode alongside Jett on her black spotted mare. "So, tell me. Is Joxie still married to that blonde?"

Jett felt his lips twitch with amusement. Even after all these years, she still held a candle for Bro, he thought to himself. "Yes - and they're very happy." He took a moment to collect his thoughts before asking, "Meg, what happened to all the townspeople?"

Meg shrugged her shoulders. "Dunno. I woke up a few days ago, went outside to get some flour and other supplies for the tavern, and everyone was gone except for me and my girls."

Jett rubbed his chin and frowned. "I don't get it. There was no sign of any trouble like there was in Mother's village. When I rode up, it was..." his voice trailed off.

"Yeah, I guess it did kind of look like a ghost town when you two rode in, but this village was hopping with activity just a few days before, Jett."

"Why did you stay then, if everyone else had left?"

Meg's eyes grew sad as she stared at him. "Where would we go?" she asked softly before she turned her head away to watch the road.

Jett swallowed hard and frowned, not knowing what to say in reply. He too turned his attention to the road.

"I gotta go! BAD!" a little girl's voice shrilly called out over the noise of wagon-wheels clattering over the road.

"You always 'gotta go'!" a boy - obviously the girl's older brother - sneered in reply.

"Mommy! Belen's being mean to me!" the girl whined.

"Am not, you big baby!"

"Are too!" The girl swallowed back a loud whimper and sniffled.

"Am not!" That was followed up with a loud raspberry.

"Both of you! Stop it and behave yourselves!" their mother snapped. "We'll be there soon, I promise."

"That's what you said a long time ago!" Belen grumbled.

Autolycus groaned as the girl's whimpering grew to full-fledged wails. "All right, people! Let's take a quick break!" he yelled out as he drew his horse to a halt. He turned around and glared at the young mother and her two children meaningfully. "And I do mean quick!"

The woman nodded as she quickly got off the wagon and took the girl in her arms. With a sharp rebuke to her son to stay in the wagon and behave himself, she set off in a quick trot towards a patch of tall bushes a short distance away from the roadside.

Autolycus shifted uncomfortably in his saddle, sucking his breath through his teeth as exquisite pain shot up his left side. He wasn't used to long jaunts on horseback and he wanted nothing better than to get home and take a long soak in a hot tub for his aching muscles. Not that THAT was going to happen anytime soon, he thought unhappily.

"Are you all right?" Cyrene asked softly.

Startled by her question, he turned his head briefly in the older woman's direction and somehow managed to smile charmingly. "Of course I'm fine!" he exclaimed.

Cyrene's eyebrows rose. "Then why don't you get down and take a break too?" she suggested with a smile.

"Uhhh... Umm... Errrr..." Autolycus hemmed and hawed for a moment before another ear-splitting grin graced his features. "Because I want to get to the village as quickly as possible, so it'd be a waste of time for me to get up and down!" he exclaimed.

Cyrene smiled knowingly. "Of course it would be," she agreed with a nod.

"You said a mouthful!" Autolycus exclaimed with a cheeky wink, his grin becoming decidedly crooked as he shrugged his shoulders. "At least we don't have much further to go," he added in.

Cyrene nodded as the smile slipped from her face. "How did the girls handle everything?" she asked quietly.

Autolycus scowled as he recalled the previous night's conversation. "As well as could be expected, I guess," he answered dubiously. He recalled the picture that Adora had drawn on her scroll and he shuddered slightly.

Cyrene sighed. "I suppose you're right," she murmured. She turned towards the direction that the mother and girl had set off in and saw that they were already on their way back to their wagon.

The rest watched as the young woman suddenly picked up her child and ran over to the wagon as if her feet were on fire. Her face was flushed as she lifted the girl inside and climbed in once the girl was settled next to her brother. "We're all set!" she called out in a very shaky voice, the color draining from her face as her daughter buried her face against her shoulder.

Autolycus and Cyrene exchanged worried glances, but they decided not to alarm the others further by asking what the two had seen or heard while away from the group. Instead, Autolycus had his horse take the lead and the group headed towards what he and Cyrene hoped would be relative safety.

It was a very silent and tense group that arrived at the village outskirts a couple of hours later. As they drew towards the gate, a lone person armed with a sword stood before it waiting for them. Autolycus, shading his eyes from the late-day sun's rays, saw that it was Joxer, who raised his hand in greeting as he began walking forward to meet them.

Cyrene, who hadn't seen Joxer in a couple of months, was shocked to see how drawn and pinched-looking his face was as he drew closer to them. "Is he all right? He looks like he's been sick," she murmured in an aside.

"He's exhausted from what happened last night," Autolycus replied softly, his left eyebrow rising. "So, did Xena and Gabrielle send you out here to keep you from tripping all over everything, you big clumsy goof?" he asked, raising his voice and plastering a huge grin on his face to hide his concern for his friend as he had his horse come to a halt.

Joxer smiled wearily. "Nice to see you too, Auto," he said quietly. He turned towards Xena's mother and nodded. "Hi, Cyrene."

"Hello Joxer," Cyrene replied as she got down from the wagon. "It's good to see you."

"Thanks. Xena's waiting for you and the others in the center of town," Joxer explained. "Follow me, folks, and we'll get you settled in!" he shouted to the others.

Autolycus slowly got down from his horse and grunted softly as he stretched tired and aching muscles. He then took the horse's reins and fell in step beside Joxer as the caravan began making their way down the path that would lead them to the main agora.

"When did Jett leave you?" Joxer asked.

"Shortly after we got to Amphipolis," Autolycus explained. "He knew that he was going to have a fight on his hands trying to persuade Gabrielle's pop to leave the farm."

Joxer's lips twitched with quickly suppressed amusement and he nodded. "Yeah," he agreed. "I wouldn't wish that on anybody - not even on my worst enemy!"

Autolycus snickered at Joxer's wry observation. "Yep..." He moved his neck from side to side, trying to alleviate the stiffness in it. "And after getting your mom, he's gonna go get Meg and..." his voice faltered when he saw a frown appear on Joxer's face. Eyes narrowing suspiciously, he suddenly reached over and poked Joxer hard in the bicep.

"OW!" Joxer yelped. "What was that for?" he asked sulkily, his lips jutting out in a pout as he began rubbing the spot that he was just poked in.

"You got a problem with Meg coming here?" Autolycus demanded.

"Of course I don't have a problem with her and her girls coming here!" Joxer replied, rolling his eyes upward. Gabrielle, on the other hand, might have something else to say about it...

Autolycus' hackles slowly lowered. "Okay," he mumbled. "It just didn't feel right leaving her behind to try to fend for herself."

"You don't have to explain anything to me. I understand," Joxer replied. He ran a hand down the side of his face and over his mouth to hide a yawn. "I just hope that everyone makes it here safely."

Autolycus nodded grimly. As they walked along, he noticed that several houses had their windows boarded up and the townspeople that hurried past them in the streets were armed with some type of weapon - anything from old swords to slingshots. A sour taste entered his mouth and he resolutely swallowed it back as they entered the center of town, where Xena and Gabrielle were directing several people how to set up barricades. He saw that Jace and Pierre were hammering boards over windows, while Adora was running over to Nikolas' house with a large bundle of clean white cloths - for bandages, he realized with a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Xena and Gabrielle looked up when they heard the clatter of wagon-wheels. Gabrielle waved at them before turning her attention back to her work while Xena put down the large piece of wood she was carrying on the ground.

"Mom!" Xena exclaimed as she hurried over to the group, Eve trailing right behind her. "Good to see that you all made it safely," she added in as she embraced Cyrene briefly.

"It's good to see you home," Cyrene replied as she returned the embrace and then hugged her granddaughter tightly.

Xena nodded, her blue eyes sparkling with worry. "Joxer, go back out to the gate and keep watch for anybody else that might be coming," she directed him.

Joxer nodded once and turned around, slowly walking back towards the gate. Xena's gaze focused on Autolycus and she jerked her head in the direction that their clumsy friend was walking in.

"Hey! Wait up, Doofus!" Autolycus shouted good-naturedly. Joxer came to a halt, turned around and waited for him to catch up. "Somebody's got to make sure you keep out of trouble," he continued, clapping his arm over the lanky man's shoulders. Joxer rolled his eyes and sighed as he and Autolycus walked away.

Xena and Cyrene watched the two for a couple of moments before they turned around. "Okay, people. Let's get you settled - and we'll need your help too," Xena said crisply.

As Eve led the group away to temporary shelter, Aer grinned wickedly as she leaned up against a building, crossing her arms over her chest as she watched everyone preparing the village for battle. "Not that it's going to help you in the end," she sneered. "I'll make sure of it." She turned her head in the direction that Joxer and Autolycus had walked off in and her grin widened

Jett and his small band had not gone very far when they heard a voice yelling, "Arrêt! Arrêt!"

Jezda reached out and grabbed the arm of the girl sitting next to her. "Stop! Wait, Jett! It's Gaston!"

Jett whirled Red Fox around as the girl, whose name was Misty, had the wagon come to a stop. She stared at the older woman. "It's who?"

"Gaston. My fiancé," Jezda explained patiently.

Jett's eyes narrowed. "Your WHAT? And since when have you been engaged, much less DATING someone, Mother?" he demanded. "When were you going to bother telling us, huh?"

"Jett, please calm down!" Jezda said as she turned her head and the small group watched as a man wearing a red outfit sitting atop a burro rode up to them.

"Ah, ma chérie! Why did you not wait for me?" the man asked.

Jezda quickly climbed off the wagon and threw her arms around him. "Oh Gaston! I've missed you so much."

"Why did you not wait?" Gaston asked as he ran his fingers through her hair.

Before Jezda could answer, the little man found himself being yanked away from his fiancée, turned around, picked up by the collar and staring into the darkest and angriest eyes he had ever seen in his life. "Who in Tartarus are you and what are you doing with my mother?" Jett snarled.

Gaston gulped loudly and licked his lips. "If you would kindly let me down, my good man, I will tell you!" he answered.

Growling, Jett dropped Gaston, who fell to the ground squarely on his behind. "Well, start talking! I'm not in the mood for any games!" he sneered, his lips turned up in disgust.

"Jett! Leave Gaston alone! I will not have you behaving towards my fiancé this way!" Jezda shouted.

Jett glared down at the clearly frightened man. "Fiancé, huh?"

"Oui," Gaston agreed with a fierce nod. He swallowed hard before he asked, "And who are you, sir?"

"I'm Jett. I'm one of her sons," Jett replied reluctantly, watching as the much smaller man rose to his feet and brushed the dirt from his rumpled outfit.

Gaston's blue eyes lit up at Jett's admission. "You are one of Jezda's sons? I'm so pleased to meet you! I will soon be your father!"

"My WHAT?" Jett quickly turned to his mother. "Mother, what is going on?"

"I was going to tell you about Gaston," Jezda said softly.

Jett was far too angry to show his normal respect for his mother. "Sure you were! When?"

"When I believe the time was right."

"And when would you have thought that the time was right, Mother? When Tartarus froze over?" Jett threw his hands up in the air. "I can't believe that you've been doing this behind our backs!" Jett turned back to Gaston. "Why did you desert my mother then, if you supposedly love her?" he demanded, poking the older man in the chest.

"Non, non! Ce n'est pas vrai! I would never desert my Jezda! I was going for help!" Gaston protested.

"On that… thing?"

"Pedro is a good burro. Jezda was safe."

Jett leaned down so that his face was inches away from Gaston's. "Her home and the entire village was destroyed, you stupid idiot! Mother could've died there!" he exclaimed in a raspy whisper. And you will NEVER be my father! he thought to himself.

Gaston's face lost all color as he stared up at the younger man's furious face before he slowly turned away to look at Jezda. "Is this true, ma chérie?"

Jezda nodded slowly. "Oui. Two days after you left, it got worse."

Gaston shook his head in disbelief. "I didn't know this would happen, truly, I didn't. Otherwise I never would've gone in the first place and left you behind, chérie."

"But you left for help, so something must've happened to make you leave," Jett interrupted before Jezda could reply.

Gaston turned back to the still-fuming Jett and nodded. "Oui, something did. Agatone and his wife were turned into pillars of salt and destroyed. I went to look for the legendary Hercules and his companion Iolaus for help. I told Jezda that I'd be back once I found them, but I got lost - and it's been very dangerous traveling around," he admitted. "It was pure luck that I spotted you." He sighed then, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "I failed you."

"Non, mon amour," Jezda replied, smiling at Gaston in reassurance. She then looked up at her oldest son. "Let's leave this place." Her dark eyes grew stern as she added in, "We will talk more about this later on."

Jett shook his head in disgust as he re-mounted Red Fox after making sure that his mother was safely back in the wagon and that Gaston's burro had been put on a lead. "Let's go! I don't want to lose the light!" he threw over his shoulder as he rode back up to the front.

Meg rode up beside him, her left eyebrow rising up. "Are you going to let him come with us? He's such a strange little man," she observed.

Jett looked back at the wagon that Gaston was now driving. He saw that his mother had her arm around the man's shoulders and he saw the affectionate glances that she kept throwing his way. The muscle in his jaw worked as he said grudgingly, "I guess I've got no choice in the matter. Can't wait to hear what Jace and Jox are gonna say about this…"

"Neither can I," Meg replied, trying not to burst into giggles.


	21. Chapter 21

Part 21:

Joxer sat down on a large rock next to the village gate and watched as Autolycus stiffly walked back and forth in the path. "Why don't you sit down?" he suggested through a loud yawn. "You'll wear a hole straight through to the Elysian Fields at the rate you're going!"

Autolycus stopped in the middle of the path and glared at Joxer. "I'll stay on my feet, if you don't mind!" he snapped. He managed to suppress a gasp as a sharp pain suddenly darted up his right side. "Besides," he mused as he began walking again, "I could use the exercise."

Joxer's eyebrows rose. "Okay. Whatever you say," he mumbled as he put his elbows on his knees and propped his head up with his hands. He sighed as he gazed down at his dirt-covered boots and blinked hard in an effort to keep himself awake.

Autolycus rolled his eyes in irritation and continued walking up and down the path at a snail's pace. The stiffness in his legs began to go away and he swung his arms back and forth to get the circulation going in them again. Behind him, a very bored Joxer began humming as he idly drew circles in the sand with his foot.

Several minutes passed by, and Autolycus became more and more aggravated at Joxer's aimless humming. Plus, adding insult to injury, his temples started pounding in a staccato rhythm to the tune. Finally, he whirled around and snarled, "Will you quit making that racket, you moron? Gods! Don't you ever keep that big yap of yours shut?"

Joxer's head shot up at the sharp rebuke. His mobile features immediately slid into a hurt expression as his dark eyes widened in stunned surprise and his jaw opened slightly.

"Oh, don't give me that wounded puppy-dog look that you always make when your itty-bitty widdle feelings get hurt, you doofus-brain! You make me sick to my stomach when you do that!" Autolycus sneered, his hands drawing into fists as he glared down at his astonished friend.

The hurt expression disappeared from Joxer's face as he slowly rose to his feet. His nostrils flared briefly as he squeezed his eyes shut and put a hand to the right side of his throbbing forehead. His eyebrows drew together in a frown as the throbbing increased to an almost unbearable level and two scarlet blotches appeared on his cheeks while the rest of his face remained pale.

Autolycus felt his irritation fading away and he smiled disarmingly. "Hey, I didn't mean it, you big goof. No hard feelings, huh?" he asked.

Joxer's eyes opened as he lifted his head back up, eventually focusing on his friend and his features sliding into something completely foreign - for him, at any rate.

Autolycus' smile faltered at the expression on his longtime friend's face. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on a sec, buddy! I..."

"Don't call me 'buddy'!" Joxer quietly interrupted as he began walking towards the taller man, his fists clenching together. "Do you know how many years I've let you get away with calling me moron, dummy, idiot and pea-brain - and that's just what you've had the balls to say to my face?"

Autolycus swallowed hard, putting his hands up in front of him as Joxer continued his slow approach. "It was never meant seriously, honestly! You know that!" he exclaimed, laughing a little. "No need to get so bent out of shape!" He licked his suddenly dry lips as he stared at Joxer in disbelief. He had never seen such a furious expression on his normally good-natured friend's face before.

"How would I know that? Aren't I too stupid to understand?" Joxer asked in a deadly soft voice just before he launched himself at the taller man with a loud cry, tackling him to the ground. The two rolled around in the dusty path, Autolycus trying to push Joxer off him.

"Hey! Cool it, already! What's the matter with you?" Autolycus shouted as he got the upper hand briefly before he found himself looking up into his friend's outraged face. Joxer was much stronger than he expected him to be...

Joxer wordlessly snarled, his hands reaching for Autolycus' throat in an attempt to throttle him.

Autolycus barely managed to push him off just in time and he scrambled to his feet, panting from the exertion as he watched Joxer get up. He put his fists up then, adopting a fighting stance as Joxer lurched towards him. "I hate to do this to you, but you're way out of control," he muttered.

Autolycus reached back to throw a punch, only to find the tip of Joxer's sword touching his throat right at his Adam's apple. He swallowed hard, feeling the metal touching his flesh, not quite pricking the skin, but very close to doing so. His eyes lifted up slightly to gaze into the one thing that he never thought he'd see on Joxer's face.

Complete and utter hatred.

Adora stopped in the middle of the town square, her face turning deathly pale as she nervelessly dropped the pristine white cloths she held in her hands onto the ground. Her breath sucked inward with a loud hiss and she squeezed her eyes shut as the blood thudded dully in her ears.

Eve happened to look up from her work at that moment and she ran over to her. "Dorie?" she asked. "Are you okay? You look like you're going to be sick!"

Gabrielle, overhearing Eve, looked up and ran over to the two teenagers. She reached out and gently clasped her daughter's shoulders. "Dorie? Are you all right?"

Adora's pain-filled eyes slowly focused on her mother and Gabrielle's own eyes widened in sudden realization. "Joxer..." she gasped, the color draining from her face. She immediately turned around and took off in a sprint towards the direction of the village gate.

"Gabrielle, where are you going?" Xena shouted as she straightened up.

"Joxer's in some kind of trouble!" Gabrielle yelled back, still running.

"I'm coming with you!" Xena exclaimed. "Eve, stay with Dorie and make sure she's okay!" she yelled over her shoulder as she caught up with Gabrielle and ran past her.

Gabrielle grimaced as she picked up the pace.

Jace ran over to the two girls, frowning, Pierre at his heels. He heard a faraway roaring in his ears and his temples began throbbing dully. "Evie... Dorie... Let's go sit down," he quietly suggested, putting a hand on each girl's shoulder. For some strange reason, he felt like he was going to be violently sick but he resolutely shook the feeling off.

Adora's eyes slowly regained their focus and she shook her head. "Papa..." she whispered.

Jace, Pierre, and Eve exchanged worried glances. "Your mom and Xena are gonna help your father, okay? Will you let them do that?" Jace asked.

Adora nodded once and the four of them walked over to a nearby bench. Her knees buckled as she turned around and sat down on it with a hard thump.

Wordlessly, Jace sat down, pulled his niece into his arms and held her as she breathed heavily. Eve and Pierre looked on, not knowing what to do.

"Listen to me, Joxer! You don't want to do this!" Autolycus exclaimed, keeping his eyes on the metal blade. Fleetingly, he thought that he could knock the sword away from Joxer's hand but quickly changed his mind when the blade pressed harder against his throat.

"Don't tell me what I want or don't want to do!" Joxer growled menacingly.

"Okay! Okay!" Autolycus readily agreed. "Just calm down!"

Joxer blinked, his eyes momentarily losing focus. His headache was almost unbearable now and he uttered a low, hoarse cry as his grip on the hilt loosened slightly, forcing him to tilt the weapon away from Autolycus' throat.

Autolycus knocked the sword away from Joxer's hand with a fast chop to the wrist, and then he whirled around and kicked the younger man hard in the rear.

Joxer fell down on all fours with a loud yell, blinking hard for a few seconds. "Get... Out... Of... My... Head...!" he gasped as he slowly rose upright.

Autolycus stared at Joxer as he lurched back and forth in the path like a drunken sailor, his hands clamped over his head.

"GET... OUT... OF... MY... HEAD!" Joxer screamed, falling to his knees as his face twisted up in sheer agony. He howled wordlessly then, the unearthly sound making Autolycus shiver involuntarily before his eyes rolled up and he passed out just as Gabrielle and Xena arrived.

"JOXER! NO!" Gabrielle yelled as she ran over to her husband and fell to her knees beside him.

"What happened?" Xena asked, her sharp eyes immediately spotting the signs of the scuffle between the two men and Joxer's sword lying in the path.

"I dunno," Autolycus mumbled, shaking his head as he watched Gabrielle trying to rouse Joxer. "We were waiting out here for folks to show up at the gate... He started humming... I got really annoyed with the racket he was making and I told him to knock it off..." He paused for a moment, shaking his head. "Then he just went completely off his rocker..." He shuddered. "The look in his eyes... I hope I never see anything like that in them again."

Xena frowned fiercely as she knelt down next to Gabrielle, who looked up at her with panicked eyes. "He's coming to, Gabrielle," she murmured.

Gabrielle nodded, anxiously watching as Joxer's eyes fluttered open and eventually focused on her.

"G-G-G-Gabby?" he whispered weakly. He tried to sit up, but the two women made him stay down.

"Easy, Joxer," Xena murmured, quickly checking him over for any signs of injury. Satisfied that he hadn't hurt himself, she and Gabrielle then helped him up into a sitting position.

"What happened?" Gabrielle asked softly, reaching out to caress his cheek.

Joxer shook his head once, wincing a little from the residual headache. "I was sitting on that rock -" he vaguely indicated the boulder. "-and I started humming 'cuz I got bored. Autolycus yelled at me to knock it off..." he paused, his eyebrows drawing together in a frown. "Then I'm not really sure what happened next..." he mumbled.

"You went crackers, you big doo..." Autolycus interrupted. He was going to say more when the two women turned around and glared at him. "Never mind," he muttered uncomfortably.

"Take your time, Joxer," Xena murmured as she turned around to face him.

Joxer shook his head, still frowning. "I remember getting real angry and my head... It... It felt like someone was inside it and pounding on my brain with their fists... Squeezing it together... It hurt so bad..." He passed a shaking hand over his eyes.

Xena and Gabrielle exchanged alarmed glances. "One of the Gods?"

Xena nodded grimly. "Yeah."

"But which one - and why?" Gabrielle asked.

Xena's eyes darted back and forth as she rose to her feet. "I don't know, Gabrielle," she admitted. "But I'd bet my chakram that it was the same one that made Tolly and those men he gathered together go on that murdering spree." She exhaled loudly and gazed at Autolycus. "I'm going to take a quick look around the area, see if I can find anything. Give Gabrielle a hand with taking Joxer back to their place. I'll stay here for now to see if anybody else happens to show up."

Autolycus nodded and watched Xena move away before turning towards Gabrielle, who was helping a none-too-steady Joxer to his feet. He looked down at the ground, picked up Joxer's abandoned sword and walked over to the couple. Wordlessly, he slid it back into the scabbard hanging at Joxer's hip.

Joxer looked down at the sword and then looked up at Autolycus, horrified. "I tried to..."

Autolycus winked at him. "It's a good thing that you're such a big klutz," he said, grinning as he put his arm over Joxer's shoulders and the three began walking back towards the village square.

Joxer shook his head. "It's not funny!" he exclaimed softly, unsuccessfully trying to shake the thief's arm off.

The smile slid from Autolycus' lips. "You're right. It's not funny. Someone tried messing around with your noggin and you coulda lopped mine off. Either way, it was a bad deal for the two of us - 'specially for me!"

Joxer sighed, his lips twisting up in an unhappy pout. "I didn't..."

"I know you didn't, you big dumbbell," Autolycus said with gruff affection, his eyes meeting Joxer's for a moment. "But whoever pulled that bad mojo on you… Well, let's just say that the payback's gonna be a bitch - especially if it's Xena who doles it out," he added in with a chuckle.

"I wouldn't be so sure of Xena being the one who doles it out," Gabrielle growled. She looked up at Joxer then, her face softening. "You look like you've been run over by a chariot a few times, Pookie," she observed as she squeezed his waist gently.

"Thanks - I think," Joxer replied, his lips sliding up into a lopsided smile.

Gabrielle returned the smile, giving his waist another squeeze as she leaned her head against his chest. "I'm just glad that you're both all right." She lifted up a finger, signaling for her husband to keep silent when his mouth opened up. "She's okay, Joxer - more shook up than anything else. Let's go home so you can get some rest."

Joxer nodded once and the three continued their slow walk back home.

Aer stalked away from the village gate, her mind whirling in disbelief over what had just happened. A mere mortal actually had managed to overthrow her mind control... "How could he?" she sputtered, shaking her head. "He's nothing but a simple-minded mortal!"

"The vessel is not just a simple-minded mortal, Aer - and if you directly attack him and the girl in such a manner again, I assure you that I will make good with my promise," Teutales said as he appeared before the stunned War Goddess.

"Then why don't you just simply destroy him and the brat and be done with it?" Aer demanded, her eyes briefly flashing a yellow-green.

Black eyes sparked white-hot in response. "I will deal with the vessel and the girl on my own terms - and when I feel the time is right. Now stay out of my way and do the job that you were supposed to do!" He disappeared in a blue-white flash, leaving behind a fuming Aer standing in the middle of the field.

Xena shook her head angrily as she finished her quick search of the area. She didn't expect to find anything but it gave her something to occupy herself while waiting for anyone to show up. "Damn!" she cursed under her breath.

She pulled her hair away from her face and sighed as she walked over to the boulder where Joxer was sitting earlier and leaned up against it wearily, crossing her arms over her chest. She looked up at the sky and saw that the sun was beginning to set behind the hills. She then turned her attention towards the road and she could see two wagons approaching in the distance. She pushed herself away from the boulder and stood at full attention, keeping her sword sheathed behind her back, but ready to spring into action at a moment's notice.

As the two wagons drew closer, Xena relaxed slightly when she saw that it was Gabrielle's family. That feeling quickly disappeared when she saw that Lecter's left arm was bandaged and Herodotus sported a large bruise on his right cheek and had a cut above the eyebrow. She also noted with mild amusement that Hecuba and Lila were both armed with frying pans. She ran over to the wagons as they drew to a halt. "What happened?"

Herodotus glared down at her and replied in a soft, strained voice, "We were attacked on the road - no thanks to you!"

"Stop blaming her for everything, Herodotus!" Hecuba shouted. "It wasn't her fault that we were attacked by those crazy people! We were aware that something like this could happen and we accepted it!" She turned around to face Xena and continued in a calmer voice, "Are Gabrielle, Joxer and Adora all right?"

Xena nodded. "They'll be very glad to see you."

"Good," Hecuba replied. She then turned to her visibly astonished husband and said, "Let's go. I want to see them."

Herodotus continued staring at his wife for a moment before he turned away from her and made a clicking noise.

Xena stepped aside to allow the wagons to pass by and nodded as Lila acknowledged her with a wave and gave the children what she hoped was a reassuring smile before turning her attention back to the road.

As the last rays of the sun faded away and the sky settled into early twilight, Xena heard footsteps behind her. She turned around, her hand involuntarily hovering over her chakram, but she quickly dropped it to the side when she saw that it was Gabrielle, who carried a lit torch in one hand and a small package in the other. She silently watched as her friend lit the two torches placed in stands at either side of the village gate.

"Thought you might like a little light and some company," Gabrielle murmured as she placed the torch she carried into another stand.

Xena's lips twitched up into a brief smile. "Wouldn't hurt," she admitted as Gabrielle joined her.

"A little something for you to eat too," Gabrielle said, giving Xena the small wrapped package. "You've had nothing since breakfast this morning."

Xena's stomach growled at the scent of warm, freshly baked flatbread, olives and cheese rising up from the paper and she gratefully tore into the package. "Thanks," she mumbled before hungrily biting into the flatbread. She had nearly demolished the impromptu meal before she finally turned to Gabrielle, swallowed and asked, "How's Joxer doing?"

Gabrielle's features drew into a concerned frown as Xena took a drink of water from her water-skin. "He's okay, but exhausted. He kept trying to apologize over what happened until Autolycus threatened to sew his mouth shut." She pushed a lock of hair away from her eyes. "I made him go to bed after we had something to eat and he's sleeping like a log. Dorie, Jace, Pierre and Eve are back at the house working..." she ended with a small sigh.

Xena nodded, gazing at her longtime friend carefully. "Gabrielle, are you all right?" she queried as she put her hand on Gabrielle's shoulder after placing the parchment and water-skin on the rock.

Gabrielle nodded once before she turned away to stare down the road, but not before Xena saw the worry and exhaustion in her friend's too-bright eyes. "Yeah, I'm okay."

"But..."

Gabrielle continued staring ahead into the distance. "I don't know how much more Joxer can take, Xena. I can't watch this happening again..." Her head tilted up towards the sky and it was quite some time before she spoke again. "I keep thinking of what happened to..."

"Perdicas?"

Gabrielle exhaled harshly, passing a hand over her eyes. "Yeah," she whispered. "It's just that I've finally got it right and the thought of losing..."

Xena nodded as she reached out and fiercely embraced her friend. "Joxer's going to be okay, Gabrielle. We'll all be okay." I hope, she added in silently.

"Thanks," Gabrielle replied, rewarding Xena with a tiny smile when they broke the hug before turning back to look down the road. Her eyebrows immediately drew together. "What on earth is that?" she muttered, pointing at a rather bright light headed straight towards them.

The hair on the back of Xena's neck began prickling as she turned towards the direction that Gabrielle was pointing in. "Ares..." she hissed.

"I don't think that using pink lighting and walking to get where he wants to go is exactly his style," Gabrielle observed with a chuckle as the light drew closer.

Xena's eyebrow rose at the sight of Hercules, Iolaus, White Dove, Aphrodite and a darkly scowling Ares approaching on foot. "I've got a very entertaining story to tell you later," she murmured in an aside to Gabrielle, who choked back laughter. "Hello!" she exclaimed.

"Yo, Warrior Babe!" the Love Goddess' cheerful voice replied. "Hey, Blondie! How's it shakin'?" she added in with a giggle.

Gabrielle raised her hand up to shade her eyes, rolling them at the same time. "Uh... Could you turn that down?" she asked as the small group came to a halt.

"Huh?" Aphrodite blinked. "OH!" she exclaimed, realizing what Gabrielle meant. She lowered her hand and the warm pink glow surrounding them faded away. Her head shot up suddenly, her brow furrowing slightly. "There are some majorly nasty vibes hanging around here! Way not cool! If I didn't know better, I'd swear it was Discord!"

Ares nodded curtly, his eyes darting back and forth as he scanned the area. His eyes met Xena's and softened for a split second before they grew hard and angry again. Without a word and a ferocious scowl, he disappeared in a flash of blue-white light and accompanying thunderclap.

Xena sighed as she approached her friends. "It's good to see all of you," she greeted the group huskily. "Did you run into any trouble?"

Hercules nodded. "A few hours ago, we were ambushed by some villagers, but we managed to deal with it." His eyes met Aphrodite's. "We just had to watch out for the occasional zap from her."

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" the Love Goddess replied, her lips turning up in a pout as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Uh, yeah... With some rather, um-" Iolaus cleared his throat loudly. " -interesting results."

Xena, Gabrielle, and White Dove exchanged amused glances at his words while Aphrodite sputtered.

"I'll just bet," Xena said with a wry grin before her expression became serious. "We need to talk strategy," she added in as she took one of the torches off the stands, Gabrielle and Iolaus following suit.

The small group then walked through the gates and Hercules was about to close them when Aphrodite snapped her fingers. A moment later, the gates were closed and barred shut for the night.

"Later! Got other things to work on while you peeps talk shop," Aphrodite observed. "Like finding that grody skank that's been spreading bad karma 'round the place," she muttered under her breath. She snapped her fingers and disappeared in a rain of golden sparkles, leaving behind the sweet scent of roses.

The group looked at each other before Xena shrugged her shoulders and set off in the direction of Gabrielle and Joxer's home. The others followed silently behind her.


	22. Chapter 22

Part 22:

After stopping for the night to camp out, Jett and the others found themselves making good time back to Eleutherae when they were attacked by several villagers armed with anything from pitchforks to large sticks.

"Son of a bacchae!" Meg yelled as a large stone whizzed past her ear. To her shock, it was a young girl that threw it and she managed to duck just in time before she was hit squarely in the face with another rock.

"DIE, SCUM! DEATH TO YOU ALL!" one of the men shouted, raising his pitchfork as he ran straight towards Jett, who leapt off Red Fox and drew his sword.

"Jett! No! These are innocent people! Don't harm them!" Jezda cried out.

"Mother, I don't have time to debate with you!" Jett replied as he used the back of his weapon to bring the man down. "I'm kind of busy right now!"

Gaston quickly jumped down from the wagon, drawing his small dagger. "Do not fear, my son! I will help you."

"GET BACK IN THE WAGON AND KEEP AN EYE ON MY MOTHER, YOU MORON! AND I'M NOT YOUR SON!" Jett yelled as he punched another man out. "Meg, get everybody out of here!"

"Like Tartarus I will!" Meg hollered as she jumped off her mare, her ice-blue eyes flashing in anger as a woman came running over, pitchfork in hand. She let out a yell and grabbed the pitchfork from the woman, who, once disarmed, ran off in the other direction.

"Gods damn it, Meg! Leave here! AAAAIIIIOOOOOWWWWWW!" Jett looked down and saw that a boy was biting him in the leg. "Get off me!" he growled, grabbing the boy by his shirt and lifting him up by it. "Go away before I bite you!" he snarled, lunging his head forward and snapping his teeth together for emphasis before dropping the boy onto the ground.

The terrified boy ran off into the forest, screaming.

Jett whirled around and delivered a kick to another villager's midsection, knocking him over. He saw from the corner of his eye that some of the girls in the wagons were defending themselves by hitting at the attacking villagers with sacks of flour or anything else they could get their hands on.

As Jett found himself being overwhelmed by the other villagers, Meg leapt onto Red Fox. "YIYIYIYIYIYIYI!" Her eyes were wild as she rode straight into the crowd, making them scatter before they were trampled by the horse's hooves. She reached out and Jett grabbed her hand. He scrambled onto Red Fox and had him turn to face the small band of wagons.

"YAH!" he hollered, making Red Fox go into a gallop and the two rode up next to Meg's mare. She slid over onto her horse and they wheeled around just as the villagers went to attack again.

Suddenly, there was a small but spectacular explosion a short distance away from the villagers, who stopped in their tracks and began coughing at the black smoke and the sulfurous smell that followed it. Frightened by the noise, Red Fox and Meg's mare both reared, but the two riders managed to stay on their mounts.

Jett whirled around to see that Gaston was standing on the wagon's seat, holding a flint and what appeared to be a tiny rocket in his hand. His lips were pulled back in a grimace and his nostrils flared as he glared at the would-be attackers. "I have more of these," he said, holding the small but potentially deadly weapon before him. "Now I suggest that you let us through without any more trouble."

The villagers, already frightened by the first explosion, and many of them looking rather bewildered, left the clearing without further incident. Gaston puffed his chest and winked at Jett. "We did it, my boy!" he crowed.

Jett's eyes narrowed as he glared at the older man. "If you pull another foolish stunt like that again, old man, I'll..." he hesitated for a moment. "And I'm not your boy!" he finished, turning Red Fox around and taking the lead, Meg riding up next to him. "Let's go, ladies. We've only got a short distance before we arrive in Eleutherae."

Gaston sighed as Jett took the lead, his posture stiff and straight in the saddle. "Ma chérie, did I do something wrong?"

Jezda shook her head. "It's nothing, Gaston. You just hurt his pride."

Gaston looked at her for a moment then shook his head. "Then I've wronged him. A man's pride is something you don't want to hurt. I must make it up to him, chérie."

"Non, mon amour. It's okay. Jett is upset with me for not telling him and his brothers about us," she murmured.

"Yes, I know that he is - and rightfully so," Gaston concurred, still gazing at Jett thoughtfully. "You must talk to them and tell them everything. It's not right to dismiss their feelings like that."

Jezda nodded, leaning over to kiss her fiancé on the cheek. "I will, Gaston - just as soon as we are all together," she promised.

Adora sat quietly on a large rock outside her home as she stared down the road, lost in thought.

"What are you looking at?"

Adora closed her eyes and sighed in frustration. "Andy, will you please go away? I want to be left alone for a little while, okay?"

"I just want to see what you're looking at."

"I'm not looking at anything. I'm just sitting here."

Andy climbed up on the rock and sat down beside her. "Okay. I'll help you not look for anything," he said with a grin.

Adora shook her head. "Whatever," she murmured.

"Dorie?"

Adora closed her eyes again, trying not to lose her temper. "What is it, Andy?"

"Do you think my dad is okay?"

Adora's eyebrow rose as she turned to look at the little boy. "What are you asking me that for?"

"Because you and your dad have a connection and I thought maybe you have a connection with my dad too."

Adora lost what little control she had on her temper and exploded. "Well, I don't! I can't tell you that your father is dead or alive! For all I know, he probably is dead! Now will you leave me alone?" she yelled.

Andy's bottom lip trembled at Adora's shouting and tears streamed down his cheeks as he scrambled down the rock and ran up the stairs. "Mama! Mama! Adora said Daddy was dead! Mama!" he blubbered.

Melody, Xena, and Gabrielle ran over, Melody taking her son in her arms as they exited the house and surrounded the visibly upset girl.

"Shhh, shhh, honey. It's okay," Melody crooned before turning her attention to Adora. "Why did you say that horrible thing to my son?" she demanded, stroking Andy's hair as he silently wept.

Adora blinked away the frustrated tears that were stinging her eyes and swallowed back the lump in her throat. "I just wanted to be left alone for a while. Uncle Jace, Eve, and Uncle Pierre mean well but I needed some time for myself. I kept asking Andy to leave, but he kept pestering me..." she began

"And that gave you the right to tell him his father was dead?" Melody sharply interrupted Adora's explanation. "I don't care who you are or what you have to do with what is going on here, but you will not speak to my son that way! Do I make myself clear?"

Gabrielle suddenly turned on Melody, her own temper flaring. "I'll talk to Adora. You stay out of this, Melody! She's my daughter, not yours!"

Melody glared down at the shorter woman haughtily. "That demon spawn is not your daughter! She's the daughter of a God and Joxer and we'd all be better off if she'd just go away!" she spat.

Adora's face turned chalk-white at Melody's words.

Gabrielle's eyes widened in shock then in anger. Her hands briefly went of their own accord towards her sais, but she forced herself to straighten up. "You take that back! She is NOT!" she snarled, storming over to the taller woman.

"I won't! Just as soon as Jett gets back, we're leaving!"

"No one is going anywhere! Will you two knock it off? We don't need to be at each other's throats at a time like this," Xena said, her eyes darting back and forth.

Both women turned around to stare at Xena, who returned their combined gaze with a raised eyebrow. Melody shook her head as her anger faded away. "I'm sorry, Gabrielle. I didn't mean what I said. I'm just worried about Jett." She turned to her pale-faced niece, who stared back at her with wide brown eyes. "I really didn't," she softly added in.

"I know, Melody. Let me handle talking to Dorie about this, okay?" Gabrielle murmured.

"Talk to Dorie about what, Gabrielle? What was all the shouting about?"

The others turned to Joxer, who walked down the stairs to join the others. Gabrielle immediately went over to him and hugged him fiercely. "Are you okay?"

Joxer closed his eyes as he returned the hug. "I'm fine," he said reassuringly, taking advantage of the situation to kiss her briefly before breaking the embrace. "Now, what do you need to talk to Adora about?"

"She told Andy that Jett was dead."

Joxer turned to gaze at Adora, who was very quiet. "Is this true, Adora?"

Adora nodded, unable to say anything. Her eyes seemed to gaze straight through Joxer and right into Melody's eyes. Melody looked visibly uncomfortable at the girl's stare but didn't drop her gaze.

"Why would you say such a thing?" Joxer asked calmly.

Adora averted her eyes away then and pushed the hair away from her face. "I... I... I just wanted to be left alone for a little while and Andy wouldn't even after I had asked him to. I guess I lost my temper when he kept asking me questions," she mumbled.

"I see." Joxer gazed at his daughter, not saying anything else. He didn't need to.

Adora walked over to Andy and Melody. Without a word, Melody gently placed her son on the ground and Adora knelt down beside the boy. "I'm sorry that I told you that your dad was dead," she whispered.

Andy looked up at her. "Does that mean Daddy's okay?"

Adora reached out and wiped Andy's tears away with a sigh. "Look, Andy. I really don't know, but…" She thought for a moment before she carefully put her hand over his heart. "Well, I think that if he really was gone, you'd know it."

"How, Dorie?"

"Your heart would tell you. Does it hurt?"

Andy stared at her, frowning. "My heart?"

Adora nodded. "Yeah. Your heart."

"No."

Adora smiled. "Then that's a good sign."

Andy reached out and quickly hugged Adora. "Thanks, Dorie."

"You're welcome, squirt."

Andy giggled at the nickname and they all turned around when they heard the sound of horses and wagons approaching from behind. "DADDY! DADDY!" he cried, his eyes shining at the sight of Jett leading the wagons as they turned the corner. He ran over to the group as they drew to a halt.

Jett quickly dismounted from Red Fox and swept his son up into his arms, hugging him to his chest. "Have you been a good boy while I was gone?"

"Oh yes, Daddy! I've been real good." Andy laughed as Jett ruffled his hair before setting him down on the ground and taking Melody in his arms for a kiss.

"I've missed you," Jett murmured as he hugged her to him closely.

"I've missed you too."

"Well... At least everyone's safe for now," Meg remarked as she dismounted her horse, ignoring Gabrielle's hard stare. "Say, Xena. Where do you want me and my girls to set up?" Before Xena could reply, Jezda suddenly reached up and grabbed Meg by her ear. "Hey! Let go, you old cow!" she yelled.

"MOM, STOP THAT! What's the matter with you?" Joxer gasped.

"You will not be 'setting up' here! You are here as guests!" Jezda snapped, giving Meg's ear a good twist before she let go.

Meg pulled away from the older woman, straightened up and walked over to Autolycus, who had just come back from gathering additional supplies. "Hey, Meg! Glad to see that you and your girls made it," he greeted her with a wink.

"Good to see you too, Mr. Stinky," Meg replied with a grin.

Autolycus rolled his eyes as Cyrene stepped forward. "Come with me, Meg," she said kindly, rewarding Jezda with a glare. "I'll help you and your girls get settled in."

Meg smiled at Cyrene gratefully. "Thanks." She then turned to Jett and gave him a good poke in the chest. "It's a good thing I'm a lady, or I'd put a halter on your mother! She better not touch me like that again or I won't be responsible for my actions!"

Jezda only gave Meg a look as she, Cyrene, Autolycus, and the rest of the girls departed then turned to Joxer, who was frowning at her and the oddly dressed little man that joined her. "I need to talk to you and your brothers. Would you please go get Jace?" she requested.

"Mom, is there something wrong? Are you ill?" Joxer asked.

Jezda smiled and shook her head. "No, little one. I just need to tell you something. Please get your brother."

Joxer stared at Jett, hoping for an answer from him, but all Jett said was, "You better go get Jace. You two are just gonna love this one!"

Joxer's eyebrow rose, but he turned around and headed over to Jace and Pierre's home.

"Uh, Jazz. Could you tell me where I can stable Pedro?"

Jett bristled at Gaston's question. "First of all, the name is Jett, not Jazz, you little shi..." He stopped when Melody glared at him.

"I'll show you, sir! My name's Andy."

Gaston turned around to look at the boy. "Andy? And who might you be?"

"He's my dad," Andy replied, pointing up at Jett, who scowled ferociously at the little man.

Gaston's blue eyes twinkled. "Oh! Well, then. I will soon be your grandfather," he explained.

Xena, Gabrielle, and Adora exchanged glances at Gaston's words, suddenly understanding the reason why Jett was so angry. Without a word, Gabrielle and Xena left to join Hercules and Iolaus, who were on the other side of town setting up a roadblock while Adora went to find Eve.

"Wow!" Andy exclaimed, his dark eyes wide with wonder.

"Will you stop saying that, you twerp? There's no way on this earth that you'll ever be my father!"

Joxer and Jace came back, overhearing what Jett and Gaston said.

"Our father? What are you talking about? Mom, what's going on?" Joxer asked.

"Honey, I promised to help Nikolas. I'll see you later," Melody said, realizing that Jezda and her sons needed to speak privately. "Andy, let's go stable the nice man's burro, okay?"

"Okay! Bye!" Andy waved to the others before putting his hand in his mother's and trotting off with Pedro in tow.

Jett nodded, watching Melody and Andy take Pedro's lead and walk towards the town stables before turning around to face the rest of his family and Gaston.

"Please, my sons. Let's sit down," Jezda said, indicating the carved marble benches that were nearby. After they were seated, she said, "This is Gaston and he's the man I'm going to marry. I love him and he loves me. We met over three months ago."

"So, I'm asking you again, Mother. When were you going to bother with telling us?" Jett ground out through clenched teeth.

"Jett, I was going to tell all of you. I honestly never meant for the three of you to find out like this, but things just kept getting in the way," Jezda murmured.

"Like what, Mother? The entire Athenian army? You didn't even have the decency to bother sending a message telling us that you were seeing this crackpot!"

Jezda rose to her feet then. "I will not put up with you talking to me like this, Jett! I'm your mother and you will speak to me with respect!"

"Like the so-called respect you gave us?" Jett's voice was a deadly-soft rasp.

"Do you love my mother?" Jace broke in before a full-fledged argument broke out between the two.

"With all my heart," Gaston responded with a nod.

Jace nodded and watched as Jezda re-seated herself. "Mother, does he make you happy?"

"Yes, he does."

"Then that's good enough for me," Jace said.

"How can you accept him just like that?" Jett asked incredulously. "For all you know about him, he could be a complete nutcase!"

Jace turned to face Jett. "Our so-called father was never a real one to either Joxer or me. He may have had a part in bringing us into the world and you might even think that he was a father to you in his own way, but he was never one for the two of us. I will probably never call Gaston my father, but I will welcome him as a part of this family."

"Well, I won't!" Jett growled as he rose to his feet, turned on his heel and quickly walked away from the group.

"JETT!" Jezda called out to her oldest son but he acted as if he didn't hear her and kept on walking. She covered her forehead with her hand before turning to her youngest son, who had been silent throughout the conversation. "Joxer?"

Joxer slowly rose to his feet and looked down at his mother with a very hurt expression on his face. "Why didn't you let us know, Mom? Did you think that we wouldn't understand?" he asked before he too turned around and walked away, breaking into a run to catch up with Jett, who was already halfway across the village square.

Jace rose to his feet, watching his brothers before turning around to face the older couple. "Just give them both time to take everything in, Mother," he said, his eyes shifting to meet Gaston's. "I'm sorry that Jett was so rude to you," he added in before he inclined his head forward and walked over to his home.

Jezda's shoulders slumped as she blinked back the tears that suddenly stung her eyes. Jett was furious at her, and Joxer was hurt because she hadn't told them about Gaston - and they had every right to feel the way they did. "I'm so sorry, mon amour. I thought that..."

"Don't be so sad, ma chérie. Jazz will learn to accept me," Gaston said as he put his arm around Jezda's shoulders and squeezed her to him.

"Gaston?"

"Oui, ma chérie?"

"His name is Jett."

"Right."


	23. Chapter 23

Part 23:

Jett stalked away from his mother and brothers, his mind whirling. One of his neighbors saw him and she opened her mouth to greet him but when she saw the look on his face, she turned around and ran off in the direction she had come from. He heard someone running behind him but he didn't look to see who it was.

"Jett..."

"Look, Jox! I don't want to talk about it, okay?"

"Okay."

Jett glanced over at Joxer when he heard the sadness in his brother's voice. He sighed when he saw the equally sad expression that went along with the voice. "I just don't get it, Jox. I really don't," he mumbled, feeling himself beginning to calm down a little. "This just isn't like her to be so... So..."

"Spontaneous?" Joxer supplied, his eyes rising up to meet Jett's.

"Exactly!" Jett answered with a fierce nod.

Joxer's lips pursed up in thought as he considered his next words. "Well, love can make you do crazy things sometimes," he said finally. "I should know."

Jett rolled his eyes at his brother's observation and shook his head. The two walked in silence for a couple of minutes before he asked, "So, what do you think of...?"

"Gaston?"

"Yeah."

Joxer's eyebrows rose. "Well... He seems okay, but a little, uh, flaky."

"Phht! Oh yeah, he's flaky, all right! Flaky like a croissant!" Jett exclaimed with an indignant snort, making Joxer chuckle. "That damned crackpot nearly got us all killed before we got here."

"What are you talking about?"

"Just south of here, we got attacked by a bunch of villagers. In the middle of the fighting, there was this explosion..." Jett began.

Joxer's eyes widened. "Wait a minute! An explosion?" He came to a halt and grabbed Jett's shoulders. "What kind of an explosion?"

Jett glared, and realizing what he was doing, Joxer dropped his hands. "It was loud. There was thick black smoke everywhere and it stank like no tomorrow!" he said. "I turned around and that kook had..." He stopped talking and stared at Joxer, who was grinning widely. "What's the matter with you? Gabrielle hasn't bought any nutbread recently, has she?"

"Black powder!"

"Huh?"

"Black powder!" Joxer repeated. "Remember Gabrielle telling about when Xena, she, and I went to Chin when Xena was pregnant with Evie - and I discovered how to make the black powder?"

Jett nodded and then his own lips lifted up in a small grin. "Yeah..." He clapped Joxer on the back, almost knocking him over. "You can't fight worth a tinker's damn, but you sure can blow stuff up, Bro - including yourself!"

Joxer made a face. "Har de har har! Very funny, Jett! I'm gonna tell Xena what I want to do. See you later."

Jett watched Joxer run off before he turned around and walked away in the opposite direction, smiling slightly.

Adora walked into a clearing just outside the village, trying to keep her composure. She kept hearing Melody saying that she was 'demon spawn' over and over in her mind and that she should leave because she kept everyone in danger. "Maybe I should leave!" she yelled in sheer frustration.

"Leave? Why would you want to leave here, child?"

Adora turned around to see an old woman sitting by a hut. She frowned because she didn't remember anybody living there before. "Who are you?" she asked.

The stranger smiled warmly. "My name doesn't matter, child. I'm just an old woman. But why are you leaving?"

"Because I'm not wanted here," Adora mumbled, turning away to hide the sudden tears that stung her eyes.

"Oh child, you're so wrong. From what I can see, you're most welcome here."

Adora rolled her eyes. "Not by my aunt."

"Yes, child - even by her. She was just upset."

"Then you heard her? Oh yeah, I guess that you did. I'm sure that everyone that was within twelve leagues of here heard what she said."

"Yes. I heard what she said but it'll be all right." The old woman reached into her bag and took out a golden pin that had a large sapphire stone in the middle of it. "Here. I want you to have this. It will protect you."

Adora took the pin and stared at it. "It's beautiful..." She raised her head and gazed at the old woman sharply. "Who are you?" she whispered.

The woman smiled slightly. "Me? I'm just an old woman that wants to help. Now I must leave."

The woman got up and walked away into the forest. Adora watched her leave, frowning in puzzlement until the old woman seemed to vanish into the trees without a trace. She gazed down at the pin for a few moments before she went off to find Eve.

Once she was sure that Adora could not see her, the old woman's body shimmered with a golden light and she transformed into her true form. Brigandu sighed as she watched her granddaughter leave. "I did all I could to help, my child. The rest is up to you."

"So you say... Mother..."

Brigandu's eyes widened in shock as she slowly turned around to face Teutales. "My son," she began, but he held up his hand to silence her.

"Did you think I wasn't aware of what you've been trying to do all this time?" he asked mockingly, his lips curling up into a smile. "I know that you tricked the acolyte years ago into thinking that the vessel she chose for me to bring my child into the world was the correct one - and yes, I even went along with your game after a while - in my own fashion." The smile widened and then hardened into a sneer. "But no more, Mother. The girl is mine..."

"Adora is not just yours! She is..."

"Also the child of a softhearted mortal that I can easily dispose of, if I wish," Teutales interrupted.

Brigandu shook her head wearily. "Your arrogance will be your downfall, my son," she murmured as she turned away from him. "Do not dismiss the mortal named Joxer so easily."

"Perhaps I shouldn't," Teutales grudgingly admitted after a few moments of silent contemplation. "But your fondness for the mortals will be your downfall, Mother." He looked up at the sky and smiled. "War is coming. I can feel it in the air - and what a beautiful thing it'll be..." He exhaled blissfully, closing his eyes before disappearing into the ether.

Brigandu stared at the spot that her son had been standing in for a long time lost in deep thought before she left the clearing in a golden flash of light.

Adora found Eve sitting on the ground, writing. "Eve... The weirdest thing just happened..."

Eve looked up from her scroll, the quill she held between her fingers poised in midair. "Dorie, are you all right?" she asked softly.

Adora nodded and smiled slightly, knowing the reason why Eve asked her that. "Yeah, I'm going to be okay. Thanks." The smile quickly turned to a frown as she stared down at her hand.

Eve re-capped her ink bottle and rose to her feet, absentmindedly rolling up her scroll. "What are you looking at?"

"This." Adora showed Eve the pin.

Eve blinked in surprise. "It's beautiful, Dorie... But where did you get that? Did you find it somewhere?"

Adora shook her head. "No. That's what's so weird... I took a walk to think and I came upon this old woman in that clearing just outside of town. She gave it to me - said it would protect me." She saw the concerned look on Eve's face and rolled her eyes. "Evie, I'm not stupid, for crying out loud! You know that I wouldn't take something like this normally, but for some strange reason it felt right that I should." She shook her head. "I really can't explain it."

Eve put her hand on Adora's shoulder. "I know you're not stupid, Dorie. I didn't mean to make you feel like that, but maybe Mom should take a look at that pin - just to be on the safe side."

Adora nodded in agreement. "I guess you're right. Okay. Let's go."

"So, what do you think, Xena?"

Xena smiled. "I think it's a good idea, Joxer, because it'll give us a clear advantage over anybody who tries to attack. Do you think you can get all the ingredients you need - and the quantity you want to make?"

"Yeah, I think so. I'll need to stop by the apothecary first - and I'll probably need some help with assembling the rockets, too."

Xena nodded. "Okay, then. Get started on them - and, Joxer?"

"Yeah, Xena?"

"Be careful."

"I will," Joxer said with a smile, leaning down to give Gabrielle a quick kiss and waving to Hercules and Iolaus before turning around and running back to Nikolas' to get the last ingredient he needed. After that, he headed to Gabrielle's store so he could work without interruption. He climbed up the stairs and his eyes widened in surprise when he found his mother and Gaston waiting inside the shop. "Um... Hello."

They both turned around. "Hello, Joxer. Are you okay?" Jezda murmured. "I didn't..." She fell silent as she gazed at her youngest son with a troubled expression on her face.

Joxer was silent for a moment before he replied, "I'm still a little bothered that you didn't tell us, Mom, but right now I need to put that aside. There's too much work to do." Joxer then turned to Gaston, thoughtfully gazing at him for a little while before speaking again. "Jett told me about you having rockets that contained Chin powder inside them. Where did you get them from?"

Gaston looked relieved that Joxer wasn't angrily confronting him over that. "Well... There was a peddler that had recently been in Chin." He reached inside the pouch that he was carrying and handed the last small rocket he had to Joxer. "He said that these were good to have in case I ever got attacked on the road."

Joxer studied the tiny weapon intently. "You have no idea," he murmured. He looked up and gazed at Gaston in silence for a few minutes, making the older man feel nervous.

Jezda gazed at her youngest son worriedly, wondering what he was going to do or say.

Finally, Joxer spoke. "Listen, I know how to make the powder, but I need to make quite a few large rockets - and putting them together takes time." His dark eyes softened. "I'd like you to help me."

Gaston turned and smiled at Jezda, relieved. "At last, I am needed."

"Then you'll help?"

Gaston turned around, still beaming as he looked up at Joxer, who was gazing down at him curiously. "Oui! But of course! Lead on, mon ami!"

Joxer nodded and indicated the back room. "Good. Follow me, please."

Jezda smiled as she watched the two go out back. Perhaps things were going to be all right after all, she thought as the smile faded from her lips and was replaced with a troubled expression. That was, if they survived and if Jett was willing to give Gaston a chance... She sighed then and went to go find Cyrene.

"Just tell me why you accepted him without questioning his motives, Jace."

Jace looked at his brother. "Did you come here to get me on your side? I won't lie to you and say that I wasn't surprised because I was, believe me. But like I said before: if he makes Mother happy, I have nothing against them being together." He continued gazing at his older brother before he asked in a thoughtful voice, "Jett, why does this bother you so much?"

Jett stalked back and forth inside the dance studio like a wolf on the prowl. "Because he's from Gaul. He could be a spy - and we know nothing about him."

Jace considered Jett's words carefully. "That's a good point, but then again, Mother and Pierre are also from Gaul. Do you believe that they're spies too?"

"No, of course not," Jett sighed as he came to a halt in the middle of the studio and crossed his arms over his chest.

Jace walked over to Jett, placed his arm around his brother's shoulders and gazed at him. When Jett didn't try to push him away, he smiled. "Jett... Try giving Gaston a chance. No one said that you have to call him Father. Even I won't do that." He lowered his voice then. "Father's been dead and buried for over four years now. Don't you want Mother to have an opportunity to be happy with somebody she really loves?" he asked, his accent disappearing.

Jett scowled and Jace wondered if he was pushing his luck, but he returned the gaze calmly. "You know that I do," Jett muttered.

"Then just give him a chance, huh?"

"I'll try..." Jett turned away from Jace's stare and exhaled harshly. "But he's such a damned flake!"

"In this world, being a flake sometimes comes in handy."

"Jace?"

"Yeah?"

"You're a little flaky yourself," Jett murmured with a lopsided grin as he glanced at Jace.

Jace returned the lopsided grin, giving Jett's shoulders a little squeeze at the same time. "Yes, I know - and I'm proud of it."


	24. Chapter 24

Part 24:

Joxer stood in front of the table and studied the materials that he and Gaston had gathered up to make the rockets, mentally making sure they had everything before turning to look at Gaston. "Did you get everything I wrote down on the list?"

"Oui," Gaston said as he indicated the long sticks and tubes lying in a pile.

"Good," Joxer nodded as he got some bowls from a nearby shelf. "Okay. We have to be real careful while we do this, otherwise this place is gonna blow sky high," he said as he began to slowly pour one of the ingredients into a bowl. "While I'm doing this, why don't you start putting those together?" he suggested, indicating the materials on the floor. He quickly showed Gaston how to assemble the bottom section of the rocket and where to put the fuse.

Gaston nodded and the two soon became engrossed in their work for a little while until Joxer looked up and pushed a lock of hair away from his eyes. "So... Gaston... How did you meet my mother?"

The older man looked up at Joxer with a smile on his face. "Ah, oui... It was a very bad day for Gaston."

"Wait a second! Meeting Mom was a very bad day for you?"

"Non, non! You didn't let me finish! You must let Gaston tell you the whole story."

Joxer found it was a little strange that Gaston spoke about himself as if he was somebody else but he didn't comment on it. "Sorry."

Gaston dismissed the apology with an extravagant wave of his hand. "C'est tout exact, mon ami. As I was saying, it was a very bad day for Gaston. I had just come over in a great ship to this land with Pedro. I had no job and no one would hire me. One day, I rode into your mother's village. The villagers... They make fun of Gaston because he is different."

Joxer's lips lifted up in a slight smile. "I know how that feels," he murmured as he carefully added in another ingredient, his nose wrinkling up at the resulting smell.

Gaston shook his head in disagreement. "I'm not sure you do, mon ami. Gaston is a stranger to this place and the people around here don't seem to care for strangers. But your mother - she is different."

"Mom always did have a kind heart."

"Oui, Joxer. She has a very kind heart and the moment that I saw her, I fell in love. I know it sounds strange, but I speak the truth."

Joxer nodded. "Was it love at first sight for Mom?"

"Alas, it wasn't. Jezda took pity on me and gave me a job. But I did my best to please her because I loved her," Gaston sighed. He gave Joxer one of the assembled tubes and watched as the younger man carefully began pouring the powder inside it.

"So when did Mom start showing her feelings?"

"It was during a storm - a bad one. We were alone in her house. The servants had left for the night. My Jezda is afraid of storms."

"Yes, I know," Joxer said, remembering how terribly frightened his mother used to be whenever a bad thunderstorm came through Athens when he and his brothers were little. "Could you hold this steady while I put the top on?" he asked. "Thanks. Go on," he added in encouragingly.

Gaston nodded as he held the tube. "I held her as the storm raged on that night and I knew that I had to tell her how I felt about her. So I did, and she told me that she felt the same way."

"Did you speak Greek or Gallic?"

Joxer and Gaston both looked up to see Jett leaning against the doorway, his face expressionless as he stared at the two of them.

Gaston nervously cleared his throat and said, "We spoke in our native tongue."

"Jett, how long have you been standing there?" Joxer asked.

"Long enough. I'm glad someone was there for Mom," Jett said as he straightened his posture. "Jox, Xena wants to know if you've got those rocket thingies ready yet. She said she can smell trouble in the air. She thinks we're going to see some action tonight - and it won't be pretty either."

"The first batch should be ready in another hour or so."

"Okay. I'll tell her." Jett then walked away.

Gaston looked at Joxer. "I think he will like me - eventually."

Joxer nodded, gazing at the empty doorway with a troubled look on his face. "Who knows? Stranger things have happened before." He sighed heavily before turning around and adding in, "Okay. Let's get this done."

Adora sat on the bench breaking up beans for supper when a pair of hands covered her eyes. "Guess who?"

"Um, let me see... Is it Uncle Hercules?"

"No! Better than him!"

Adora felt her lips beginning to twitch with suppressed laughter. "Better than Uncle Hercules, huh? Then you've just got to be my dad!"

"Oh, come on! It's me - Ioannes!" the boy groaned as he took his hands away.

Adora turned around with a huge smile on her face. "Hi, Ioannes."

"Hi Dorie... Where've you been lately?" he asked curiously as he sat down next to her on the bench.

The smile left Adora's face. "I've been busy," she mumbled, averting her gaze away.

Ioannes reached out and touched her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but you should be getting ready just in case. Aunt Xena said that she thinks that something bad is going to happen tonight."

"I know. That's why I'm here. Stephanos and I'd like you and Eve to meet us at the olive grove right at the western edge of town."

"Why?"

The boy rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on, Dorie! We could all die tonight, if she's right..." He rose to his feet then and turned away in embarrassment.

Adora stood up, leaned over and gave Ioannes a kiss on the cheek. "Okay, I'll get Eve. We'll meet you there."

Ioannes took Adora in his arms and kissed her soundly. "We'll be waiting," he murmured in her ear before turning around and heading for his house.

Adora smiled as she watched him leaving, absently reaching up and touching her lips.

"EWWWWW! That was so gross!"

Adora turned around to see Andy looking up at her with a disgusted expression on his face. Impishly, she suddenly grabbed him, picked him up and began kissing him before he could move away.

The little boy squirmed in her arms. "Oh, gross! Stop it, Dorie!"

"Andy, I think Ioannes loves me." She kissed him noisily on his left cheek.

Andy continued squirming in Adora's grasp. "Put me down! Ick! Cut it out!" he squawked when she kissed him again.

"I'm so happy!" Adora exclaimed as she whirled around.

"DORIE, PUT ME DOWN!" Andy screeched. "YOU'RE MAKING ME DIZZY!"

"Okay, okay..." Adora carefully put her cousin down. "Hey, aren't you happy for me?"

Andy's face scrunched up. "I guess so... Just don't ever kiss me again! Ewww! Girl cooties! Yuck! Ptooey!" He stuck his tongue out and ran off before Adora could say another word.

Adora smiled as she watched her cousin leave, feeling better than she had felt in days. She turned around then, the momentary euphoria changing to gloom as she sat back down to finish what she started. She knew that Eve would want to see Stephanos, but she was already in so much trouble with her parents as it was...

Gabrielle stuck her head outside the doorway just as Adora finished her task. "Are you going to be much longer with that?"

"Nope," Adora replied as she rose to her feet with the pot in her hands. "I just finished up."

"Great. Thanks, Dorie." Gabrielle smiled as Adora walked up the stairs to join her and she took the pot from her. "Could you set the table?"

"Sure," Adora agreed as they walked inside the house. "Mom...?"

"What's the matter?"

Adora sighed and shook her head. "Never mind. It's not important," she mumbled as she began putting plates on the table.

Gabrielle gazed at her daughter curiously, knowing that something was bothering her but decided not to press her for details. "Okay," she said with a nod as she put the beans over the fire after dumping water into the pot and salting them. "You know that if something's bothering you, you can always talk to me or your father."

"I know. Thanks, Mom." She went over to Gabrielle and hugged her fiercely.

"Mom... Dad?"

Joxer swallowed the piece of bread that he was chewing on and turned his head towards Adora. "What's the matter, Dorie?" he asked softly.

Xena and Gabrielle exchanged glances before focusing their attention on father and daughter while Eve gazed at her friend curiously.

He looks so tired, Adora thought worriedly - and it's all because of me. She sighed, temporarily lost in her thoughts before she said, "Ioannes stopped by here earlier..."

"And?" Joxer gazed at Adora curiously.

Adora blushed and bit her bottom lip. "He asked if Eve and I could meet him and Stephanos for a little while at the olive tree right at the edge of town... I, uh, was wondering if we could go." She sighed and looked down at her hands, which she was nervously wringing. "I know I've caused a lot of trouble these past few days and I'm still grounded, but..." She trailed off.

Eve put her mug on the table and looked down at her hands as she waited for the three adults to mercilessly begin chewing her and Adora out. As the uncomfortable silence stretched, she dared to look up at her mother for a split second and quickly averted her eyes when Xena impassively returned her gaze before turning towards the equally unreadable-looking Gabrielle and Joxer. Please! she thought desperately. Just get it over with already and...

"Okay."

"WHAT?" Both girls whirled their heads around to look at Joxer with wide, round eyes.

The left side of his mouth lifted up in a tired half-smile. "You both seem rather surprised that we're giving you permission."

"That might just be the understatement of the year, Uncle Joxer."

Gabrielle chuckled at Eve's remark, but her face quickly grew serious as she looked at the still-astonished duo. "We're saying that it's okay for you to go because you asked us. You didn't try making up some kind of story or just simply sneak away when none of us were looking to get what you wanted," she explained.

"Right," Xena agreed with a nod. "I won't say that I'm not worried because I really feel that something's going to go down tonight, but we want you know to that we trust you to ultimately make the right decision and be responsible for your actions."

Adora's face lit up like a Roman candle as she rose to her feet. "Thanks!" she exclaimed, hugging her parents and Xena before sprinting over to the door and practically jumping over the threshold. "C'mon, Evie!" she said eagerly, sticking her head inside the doorway.

"Okay, okay! I'm coming!" Eve laughed as she joined her friend after enthusiastically embracing the others. "Thank you!"

"We won't be long," Adora promised.

"That's good, because I'd hate for us to have to come after you."

"PAPA!" Adora rolled her eyes in exasperation and yelped when Eve unceremoniously grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her down the stairs.

"We'll be back around sunset!" Eve yelled over her shoulder and took off in a dead run, Adora hot at her heels.

Joxer waited until they could no longer hear the girls' excited chattering before he leaned back in his chair and sighed. "I hope we did the right thing." He turned in the direction of the open doorway, his features etched in concern.

Gabrielle reached out and affectionately ruffled Joxer's hair. "I think we did. Let's face it, Pookie. They're not little kids anymore. We can't protect them from everything, no matter how much we want to," she murmured before kissing him on the cheek.

Joxer returned the kiss and smiled sadly. "I know. It's hard to let go, though."

Xena nodded thoughtfully, her eyes quickly darting towards the door before she stood up, picked up her supper bowl and looked down at her longtime friends. "C'mon. We've got a lot more work to do," she quietly reminded them. "The others should be coming over shortly to talk strategy."

Gabrielle and Joxer rose to their feet to clear off the table as Xena walked out the door.


	25. Chapter 25

Part 25:

"Wait up, Evie!" Adora gasped. "What's a jog for you is a full-fledged run for me!"

Eve came to a halt in the middle of the pathway and laughed, her blue eyes gleaming. "Sorry Dorie," she apologized as her much shorter friend caught up to her. "I guess I got carried away with myself."

"Uh huh," Adora replied with a mock glare that made Eve laugh. "Let's go. There's not much time that we can spend with the guys before we have to go back."

Eve glanced up at the sky and nodded. "We better step on it then." She began walking as quickly as she could down the path. About ten minutes later, they reached the outskirts of town and saw Stephanos and Ioannes waiting for them by the olive tree.

Eve felt her eyebrows rising curiously as Ioannes impatiently paced back and forth while Stephanos leaned against the tree trunk watching him. Eve raised her hand and waved to them. Ioannes stopped his pacing long enough to wave back while Stephanos pushed himself away from the tree as he returned the wave.

"Ioannes looks like a nervous wreck," Adora murmured in an aside as they approached the two.

"He's not the only one that's feeling like that," Eve replied.

"No kidding!" Adora softly exclaimed and smiled as the boys walked over to greet them.

"I'm so glad that you were able to come," Stephanos murmured as he took Eve's hands in his. His eyes shifted towards Ioannes and the gentle smile on his face changed. "So very glad..."

Eve gasped painfully as Stephanos' grip suddenly tightened to a near bone-crushing grasp. "OW! Let go! You're hurting me!"

"Hey! What are you doing to her?" Adora demanded. She began walking over to Eve, who was struggling to free herself and squawked in surprise when Ioannes reached out and grabbed her by the arms, wrenching them behind her back. "Let me go!" she yelled, whipping her head around to look at him.

"I don't think so, whelp!" Ioannes replied with a wide smirk.

Before either girl could respond, Ioannes' and Stephanos' eyes glowed eerily. There was a blinding flash of light and the last thing that they saw and heard before falling into unconsciousness was that their boyfriends' bodies began changing and harsh women's laughter rang out.

Xena pushed her hair away from her face before looking down at the parchment that had the village's map drawn on it. "Okay. The northern wall is probably the most vulnerable due to the forest just a short distance away."

"Lots of places for people to hide and set up ambushes," Jett remarked curtly.

"Yep," Hercules agreed, glancing over in Jett's direction before turning his own attention back to the map. "Hopefully, the roadblocks that we set up earlier will give us more time to prepare. These townspeople are farmers and businessmen, not trained soldiers."

Gabrielle nodded grimly. "There's also a good chance that if something happens, our attackers will be just as untrained as they are." Her lips curled up in a smile as she glanced over at Joxer. "Plus, we've got something they don't have - those rockets."

"Do you think you've made enough of them, Little Brother?" Jace asked, his lack of accent betraying his anxiety.

"I used every last bit of ingredients that I could find in the village to make the black powder," Joxer said wearily. "And would you please stop calling me that?" he continued irritably. His shoulders slumped forward when Jace's face fell into an unhappy pout. "Sorry. I'm just really tired."

"Don't worry about it." Jace dismissed the apology with a wave of his hand.

Her eyes still fixed on the village map, Xena then pointed to the main gate entrance. "All right, then. I've got Autolycus and Iolaus..."

A sharp, agonized wail interrupted Xena from going any further.

"JOXER!" Gabrielle yelled as she just barely managed to catch him before he fell to his knees.

Jett and Jace's faces turned pasty white and they both gasped, clutching at their foreheads.

"Joxer, look at me!" Gabrielle shouted hoarsely. From the corner of her eye, she could see Melody and Pierre forcing their spouses to sit down and push their heads between their knees before they fainted away. "JOXER, FOCUS AND LOOK AT ME!"

"I... can't..." Joxer mumbled.

"Can't what? Tell me what's wrong, damn it!" Gabrielle shook him a little.

Joxer's head lolled back and forth limply for a few moments before his eyes finally managed to focus on Gabrielle's face. A single tear fell down his cheek. "She's... gone."

Gabrielle blanched. "What do you mean, she's gone? Who's gone?"

Joxer's eyes closed briefly as he raised a shaking hand over his heart. "I... can't feel Dorie. It was like... a part of... me... was ripped away," he choked out.

Xena's face turned chalk-white. "Eve..." she whispered. Without another word, she ran outside and headed off in the direction the girls had gone earlier.

As Eve slowly regained consciousness, she came to the realization that she was in a dimly-lit room. She also realized that she was chained by her wrists and ankles to a table.

"It won't do you any good to try and break free, mortal," an icy-calm woman's voice informed her when she began struggling to free herself. "Even I wouldn't be able to break free from them. Those were made by Kai."

"Where am I? Who are you? Who in Tartarus is Kai?" Eve's questions shot from her lips like bullets.

"You'll find out soon enough, O so-called Bringer of Peace."

"Where's Adora? What do you want with us?" Eve demanded, her chains rattling as she moved around on the table, her head whipping back and forth as she tried to see who was speaking to her.

There was no reply.

"Hello?"

Silence.

"Is there anybody in here?"

The silence stretched.

"Adora? Where are you? Answer me, please! DORIE! DORIE!"

Eve's panicked screams dully echoed back to her ears.

So cold, was Adora's first thought as her eyes slowly opened and gained focus. She found herself propped up against a wall and seated on a small cushion. She raised a trembling hand to her face and drew it across her eyes. She hissed as pain suddenly ricocheted through her body and made her double over. It felt like someone had tried pulling her in half and had very nearly succeeded in the task. C'mon! I've gotta stay focused... Need to find Evie and get out of this place...

Adora blinked several times as she lifted her head up so she could take in her surroundings, which consisted of four stone walls, a long table that had very suspicious-looking stains on it, the cushion she was sitting on and a couple of torches placed in stands.

She also saw that she was directly facing an open doorway that led out into a dimly-lit foyer.

Using the wall as support, Adora managed to rise to her feet on shaky legs but nearly slid back down when her knees began trembling like leaves. She breathed heavily and closed her eyes, trying to regain her balance and calm down.

"I see that you're finally awake."

Adora's eyes grew round at the sound of that smooth voice - a voice that had haunted her nightmares for years. Slowly, she raised her head to look up into a darkly handsome face and black eyes that glittered with barely-contained power. "Oh no..." she breathed.

"I'm pleased to see you as well, my daughter."

Adora's eyes flashed as she snapped, "I'm not your daughter! Joxer's my father and Gabrielle's my mother."

Teutales thundered, "I AM YOUR FATHER, NOT THAT PUNY VESSEL THAT BORE YOU! HE IS NOTHING BUT A WORTHLESS HUMAN THAT NEVER SHOULD'VE SEEN THE LIGHT OF DAY!"

"He's one hundred times the man that you ever could be."

Teutales slowly regained his composure and placed his hand on her cheek, gently stroking it. "My dear daughter, I'm a God, not a mere mortal, and you are destined to do great things. You are the daughter of the God of War."

Adora shuddered the second he put his hand on her cheek and tried to move her head away. His touch made her feel sick inside. "I don't care what you say! I'll never be your daughter," she gasped.

Teutales smiled grimly. "You have no choice in the matter. I have the power to bring that darkness that you try to hide inside your soul out." Before she could avoid him, he reached out and pressed both hands against her face, squeezing down hard.

Adora gasped and try to pull away from his grasp. "I won't! You can't do this! Joxer and Gabrielle are my parents! Xena is my aunt! Eve's my best friend and I'll protect her in any way that I can!"

Teutales felt a surge of power run through the girl's body - a power that he knew he had to get control of by any means he found necessary - but not yet. He had to weaken her spirit first. He slowly released his hold on Eve's face but gazed at her for a long time before he spoke again. "You are strong, but I am stronger than you, and you will yield to me - in time." He disappeared in a black cloud of smoke, leaving behind a faint scent of ozone in his wake.

Adora slowly sank down to the floor and immediately began shaking, her breath coming in sharp, harsh gasps. Gotta calm down! I have to find Eve so we can get out of this gods-forsaken place! She opened her eyes and gazed blearily at the doorway that led to possible freedom - and to Eve. "It might be some kind of a trap, but I've got to try," she murmured. She took a few deep breaths to steady herself as she slowly rose up and headed for the doorway.

Two pairs of eyes watched Adora as she walked from the room and down the hallway.

"Keep an eye on her, but do not interfere unless you have no choice." Brigandu turned to look down at her companion, a short and squat gargoyle-like creature.

The creature bowed low, its wings spreading out briefly before uprighting itself and closing them behind its back. "It will be as you say, my lady."

Brigandu nodded as her servant left.

"Stop that screaming, foolish mortal! Your friend is gone. She is no longer in this world. Her father has her." A tall and very beautiful female goddess with long red hair and gray eyes appeared before Eve and stared down at her disdainfully.

Eve swallowed hard as she looked up. This was not the same goddess that had spoken to her earlier. "Joxer is her father," she managed to say calmly although she sensed that she was in great danger. She could feel it emanating off the goddess in waves.

Aer snorted. "He was only a vessel and a mistaken one at that. The assassin was supposed to be the vessel," she sneered.

"But at that time, Uncle Jett..." Eve's voice trailed off.

"Yes. At that time, he still had the desire to kill and he would've continued to do so if the acolyte hadn't made that foolish mistake."

Eve's face grew expressionless. "When my mother..."

Aer laughed heartily. "Do you honestly think that I'm afraid of your mother, mortal scum?" she asked, her left eyebrow rising. "Your idle threats mean nothing to me."

"You better be."

"'You better be!' Brave and foolish words, scum," Aer replied mockingly as she lowered her head down so that her nose was almost touching Eve's. "I'm not afraid of anyone, human," she said in a low voice that made Eve shudder.

Eve's blue eyes hardened. "You will be once my mother finds us."

Aer stared at the girl with a faint smile on her lips for a few moments before she disappeared in a flash of orange light.

Eve waited a few moments before she began struggling with her bonds again but gave up a short time later, exhausted from the chains' weight. From the corner of her eye, she saw a shadow on the wall. "Who are you? Show yourself!" she demanded.

A hand that held a large, intricate key in it came into Eve's field of vision. She jerked her head up to see another woman looking down at her and reaching towards her left wrist. Without a word, the woman unlocked the cuff and reached for her other hand.

Jett slowly rose to his feet, Melody supporting him. "What do you mean, Dorie's gone?"

Joxer stared at him wearily. "I can't feel her anymore."

Jett looked at his brothers. "We have to try and see if we can contact her."

Jace shook his head. "I'm not sure that we still can. It's been a long time since we've done anything like this."

Jett turned to him. "We have to try."

Joxer nodded. "Jett's right. We might have a shot at finding her and Eve if we work together."

With Gabrielle, Pierre and Melody helping them, the brothers made a circle and held each others' hands. They closed their eyes and concentrated, sweat pouring down their faces. A glow of light briefly surrounded them before disappearing as quickly as it appeared. The three broke their grip, gasping for breath as they staggered forward.

"We have to try again," said Joxer when he was able to catch his breath. He looked at everyone else in the room. "Maybe if we all join together, we might be able to get enough power to contact Dorie."

"Good idea," Hercules said. He, Melody, Pierre and Gabrielle joined the brothers and they formed another circle. The air in the room grew heavy as everyone concentrated.

"We need Xena!" Gabrielle exclaimed when nothing happened.

Joxer slowly shook his head. "Even if everybody in the village was here, it still wouldn't work. They're beyond our help," he said sadly as he drew Gabrielle into his arms.

Xena raced to the olive tree. "Eve! Adora! Where are you?" she yelled, her head whipping back and forth as she looked around for any signs of a struggle.

"They're not here."

Xena whirled around and grabbed Ares' vest. "Tell me what you did with them, you bastard!"

"What? No hello and how you've been?" Ares replied lazily as he slowly pulled her hands away from his vest. "I don't have them. I have no idea where they are."

"Don't lie to me, Ares! You might not have them but you know damn well where they are! Now tell me or I'll..."

Ares made a tsking noise. "Temper, temper," he said before disappearing in a flash of blue-white light.

"ARES!" Xena yelled, clenching her fists together. "DAMN YOU!" She closed her eyes and breathed heavily to gather her composure. When she opened them, she saw something glittering on the ground a short distance away from her. Cautiously, she walked over and picked up a pin that had a large sapphire in it. "Dorie..." she breathed. She turned around and began running back towards Gabrielle and Joxer's home.

Eve watched in stunned silence as the woman - another goddess, she slowly realized - unlocked the chains.

"Quickly, child! You must leave!" the goddess said urgently.

Eve stared at the goddess as she slowly rose to a sitting position on the table, rubbing her wrists to get the feeling back in them. "Who are you?"

The goddess shook her head. "Please, child. You must leave here!"

"Not without Dorie! I'm not going anywhere until I find her!"

"Go now, child. I will see you again soon. Now, please hurry before you're caught!" The goddess disappeared in a shower of golden sparkles before Eve could say another word.

Adora had a feeling someone was watching her and she stopped in her tracks. "You better show yourself or else!" she said sternly, although her heart was pounding like a sledgehammer in her chest. Her dark eyes darted back and forth as she tried to detect who was there.

"Please don't harm me! I'm only doing what my lady told me to do," a high-pitched voice shrilled back.

Adora's head turned in all directions as she tried to figure out where the voice was coming from. "Then you better show yourself before I come and get you!"

A small grayish colored winged creature that was almost the same color as the stone wall in the room stepped forward, making Adora screech in fright and fall onto the floor. "Please! I mean no harm!" it squeaked, holding its arms up before it and cowering before her.

Adora's eyes grew round as she stared at the odd being. "What... Who are you?"

The creature bowed before Adora. "My lady, I am called Behlem. I am the humble servant of the Lady Brigandu."

Adora frowned as she slowly rose to her feet. "Brigandu? Who's that?"

Behlem cleared his throat. "She is your grandmother, my lady."

Adora blinked. "Why are you following me?" she asked after a few moments of tense silence.

"To watch you, young mistress. You're not supposed to see me."

"Well, you blew it big time, buster! Now tell me how to get out and find Eve and contact my father."

"I do not know where Eve is and your father was just here."

Adora's eyes screwed shut. "Joxer is my father!" she said through clipped lips. Her nostrils flared as she gazed down at the terrified creature.

Behlem covered his head. "Please don't hurt me!" he squeaked, his black eyes round with terror.

Adora sighed as she squeezed the bridge of her nose. "Get up. I won't hurt you," she said wearily.

Behlem's face brightened at Adora's words. "I will help you, young mistress! I will be your humble servant," he said as he straightened up to full height, which was about at Adora's kneecap.

Adora shook her head. "I don't want a servant, but I'll take any help that I can find. Come on - Behlem, is it? Let's get out of here."


	26. Chapter 26

Part 26:

"So, what do we do now?" Jace asked, his eyes darting back and forth nervously.

"Wait until Xena returns," Hercules replied as he walked over to the open doorway to look outside and keep watch for her. "Hopefully she's found something that will give us some kind of a clue as to where the girls are."

An uneasy silence fell over the small group and everyone jumped in surprise when Hercules said, "She's coming." He moved aside so Xena could enter the room where everybody looked at her with worried expressions on their faces.

"Did you find anything?" Gabrielle asked anxiously.

"This." Xena nodded grimly and held out her hand to reveal the pin. The large sapphire sparkled brilliantly in the candlelight as she turned her palm out so that everyone could see it. "Ares showed up..." Hercules growled but allowed her to continue speaking. "...but if he knows where Eve and Dorie are, he's not telling, the bastard."

"It's beautiful," Melody breathed as she gazed down at the pin.

"That's not anything that was made by a jeweler. Some god made that," Hercules muttered darkly.

"Do you recognize it from anywhere?" Jett asked, his eyebrows rising as he turned his attention to Hercules.

"No, but I can tell that..."

"Let me see it!"

Everyone turned around to look at Joxer, who was gazing down at the pin with an odd expression on his face.

"Joxer, we don't have time for this! We have to find the...!" Gabrielle exclaimed.

"Give me that!" Joxer sharply interrupted her, his eyes never leaving the object in Xena's hand.

Xena's eyebrow rose at the harsh tone, but she held it towards Joxer without a word of rebuke and widened her eyes at Gabrielle when she opened her mouth to start yelling at him.

Gabrielle scowled but kept silent as she watched her husband snatch the pin away from Xena's hand.

Joxer's lips puckered into a tight line as his hand tightly closed around the pin and he shut his eyes. He inhaled deeply and frowned in concentration. His breathing grew shallow as sweat broke out on his forehead and ran down his face. Blood trickled from his hand from where the pin had dug into the flesh and slowly dripped onto the floor.

As the others watched in anxious silence, a bluish light surrounded Joxer and a weird, high-pitched whine echoed around the room as the light around him grew brighter in intensity.

Jace and Jett shut their eyes and clapped their hands over their ears, gasping in pain, as did everyone else except for Hercules, who managed to pry the pin from Joxer's vise-like grip and he ran over to the door, shielding his eyes from the glare. He flung the glowing pin into the sky just before it exploded with a tremendous bang, the force of the blast knocking everybody in the house off their feet. "Is everyone all right?" he asked a few minutes later, rubbing a hand over his eyes as he stumbled to his feet.

"I think so," Xena replied slowly as she looked at the others, who were also unsteadily rising to their feet.

Jezda and Gaston ran into the house just as everyone else got to their feet. "What happened? Where did that blast and bright light come from?" she asked. "Is everyone all right? Where are the girls?"

"Long story, Mom, and we're all right. We think that the Gods have Dorie and Eve," Jett quickly replied as he looked over at Joxer and Gabrielle while Jezda gasped loudly at his explanation. His eyes narrowed as he focused his gaze on Gabrielle, who was glaring at her husband with a furious expression on her face.

"What in Tartarus were you thinking?" Gabrielle yelled before anybody else could speak up. "Better yet, were you even thinking when you did - whatever you tried to do? Gods, Joxer! How could you be so damned impulsive at a time like this? For all we know..." she trailed off, her hands clenching together in fists as she tried to calm down.

"She's not dead."

Gabrielle's eyes narrowed to slits at her husband's softly worded response. "How do you know that?" she asked through clipped lips.

Joxer refused to answer his wife's question and stared down at his feet, the muscles on the right side of his face working furiously.

"Answer me, Joxer! How do you know that Dorie's not dead? How can you be so damned positive that she's not dead?" Gabrielle reached out and shook him violently before anybody could stop her.

"Because he'd be dead, too."

Gabrielle whirled around to stare at Xena, who was gazing at Joxer with a raised eyebrow as she folded her arms over her chest and leaned against the wall. "Am I right?"

Joxer refused to answer Xena's question. He didn't need to. His silence spoke louder than anything that he could've said.

Gabrielle stared at her husband, her hands sliding away from Joxer's arms as her face turned pale. "Oh Gods... It all makes sense now... That weirdly intense connection between the two of you..." She closed her eyes and put a hand up to her forehead to steady herself. "How long have you known about this?"

Jace cleared his throat loudly and everyone else turned around to look at him. "It was Strife - when he tried to regain his Godhood. He told us that if one of them dies, the other one dies too. One literally can't exist without the other," he explained haltingly. 

Gabrielle's head whipped around in Jett's direction. He nodded slowly in silent confirmation. Her eyes then met Jezda's, and the older woman shook her head in disbelief.

"All this time... Over ten years..." Gabrielle murmured as she turned back towards Joxer, who wouldn't return her gaze. "I can't believe this! The three of you knew about this and none of you said a gods-damned word! How could you keep something like this a secret from the rest of us?" Her voice rose to a shout and Joxer flinched away from her like she had reached out and viciously slapped him across the face. "HOW COULD YOU?"

"Gabrielle, calm down!" Melody exclaimed.

"LIKE HELL I WILL!" Gabrielle snarled as she reached out and grabbed Joxer's arms before he could move away. She squeezed them so hard that her knuckles turned white and he let out a pain-filled yelp. "WHY IN HADES' NAME DIDN'T YOU TELL US THAT STRIFE SAID THAT TO YOU?"

"Because I didn't want to believe that what Strife said was the truth," Joxer finally said in a small voice as he raised his head to look at her with suspiciously bright eyes. "I didn't want you to worry that something awful could've..." He averted his head, swallowing hard. "I was too scared to tell you."

Gabrielle felt her anger slip away at his whispered admission and her shoulders slumped forward. "Oh Joxer..." she sighed as she let him go and placed her hand over her mouth.

"I shouldn't have kept it from the rest of you and I'm sorry," he mumbled as he ran his hand over his face, closed his eyes and squeezed the bridge of his nose.

"I know, Joxer. I know," Gabrielle replied softly as she took him into her arms.

With a sigh, Xena signaled to the others. Without a word, they went outside and stood around in a small circle, ignoring the townspeople who were running back and forth as they continued working on making a blockade.

"What now?" Pierre asked softly, breaking the tense silence.

Xena's eyes met his briefly before she looked at the rest of the group. "There's still a lot of work to do. I suggest that everyone else get back to doing what you need to accomplish." She looked up at the blood-red moon beginning to rise in the sky and scowled.

Hercules, Iolaus and Pierre nodded and walked away, but the rest lingered. "But what about..." Melody started to say.

"We'll get them back," Xena replied, her eyes narrowing as she turned back towards the house where she could see Gabrielle and Joxer still locked in a fierce embrace through the open doorway. "I don't know how yet, but we will." She then turned to glance at Jett and Jace and they both nodded grimly. "For now, I want the rest of you to go back to what you were doing. We have to keep everyone else's morale up as much as we possibly can." She turned around and walked back into the house, Jett and Jace following her.

As Melody began walking towards the inn where Cyrene was helping Nikolas set up an additional makeshift medical area, Jezda started to follow her sons, but Gaston reached out and caught her arm.

"This is something that we cannot help them with, ma chérie," he murmured. "We both know that," he added in as her face set into a stubborn expression.

Jezda bowed her head and sighed heavily. "I know, Gaston," she said after a few moments of silence. She cast one last troubled glance inside the doorway and saw that Jett, Jace and Xena were leading Gabrielle and Joxer over to the table where they all had been sitting at earlier. "I know."

Behlem nodded as he led Adora down the hall. "Mistress, we must find your friend and quickly."

"Yeah..." Adora ran her fingers through her hair and looked around as they came to a stop. "Do you have any idea where she could possibly be?"

"Yes, mistress."

"Good. Then show me." Adora looked down at the odd little creature. "Behlem?"

The creature looked up at her, his black eyes sparkling with worry and fear as he returned the gaze. "Yes, mistress?"

"Stop calling me mistress. The name's Adora," she sighed wearily.

"As you command, miss... Adora."

"Okay then… Let's go find Eve."

Behlem cleared his throat. "Adora, it won't be easy. There'll be danger everywhere."

Adora swallowed hard as they began moving again. "Oh yeah? Well, we'll find a way around the danger." At least, I hope that we will...

The two made their way through the maze until Adora pushed a door open and they found themselves staring outside into a sunshine-filled path that led into a rather sinister-looking forest.

"It should be dark now!" Adora exclaimed when she was able to find her voice as they walked onto the path.

"Things are - different - around here, misstr… Adora," Behlem explained nervously. There was a loud noise that came from the forest's edge and he ran to hide behind her but leaned over so he could peek from around her legs.

"Hey! I thought you were supposed to watch over me."

"I am, mistress! I'm protecting your back!"

"Oh brother! Some protection you are!" Adora rolled her eyes as she bent down to pick up a large and heavy stick. "Whoever's there, you better come out! I'm not afraid to use this!"

A low bark of laughter answered Adora and she gritted her teeth to gather herself although her knees wouldn't stop shaking as they heard slow and lumbering footsteps approaching. Her eyes widened to circles and Behlem squeaked when she saw a huge, gray-skinned Cyclops approaching her. He came to a stop for a split second to look at her and her companion before raising his club over his head and running towards her with surprising speed.

"Do something, mistress. Please save me!" Behlem screeched as Adora ducked out of the way just in time before getting clobbered over the head.

"He's too big for me to fight him!" Adora cried as she swung her stick at the Cyclops, who laughed as he easily dodged the makeshift weapon.

"Use your power!" Behlem begged.

"I can't… I don't know how to… It's not the right time!" Adora fell to the ground and rolled away when the Cyclops struck at her again.

"Mistress, please! I beg of you!" Behlem yelled as he ran after her.

"I told you! I can't! Not now..." Adora gasped as she scrambled to her feet to avoid another blow.

"When, mistress? When?" Behlem begged. "If you don't do something, we'll both be dead!"

"I don't know what to do!"

The Cyclops' club struck the ground then, just missing them, but the vibration from the blow knocked Adora and Behlem to the ground.

"Mistress, please! I don't want to die!" the gargoyle begged as he began crawling away.

"Do you think I want to?" Adora gasped. She looked around, trying to find something to stop the Cyclops, who laughed as he went after her and her companion again. Desperate, she threw her stick at the huge creature, who laughed and easily tossed it aside. A gobbet of spit flew from his lips as he approached her and the terrified Behlem, who squealed in dismay.

Adora reached out for something - anything - that she could find within her reach. Her hand closed over a sharp rock that just barely fit in her hand. Without thinking, she screwed her eyes shut and threw it with all of her might. Behlem screamed and curled himself into a little ball.

There was a dull thud, and when Adora opened her eyes again, she saw the Cyclops looking down at her with a dazed expression on his face. The single eye blinked once and then he fell backward, not moving from where he fell.

"Mistress! You've done it!" Behlem squealed excitedly as Adora slowly rose to her feet, holding her hand over her forehead. "You saved us!"

"I guess so..." Adora replied doubtfully, her eyebrows furrowing together. "Let's get out of here before he decides to wake up - and stop calling me mistress!"

Behlem bowed so low that he almost toppled over. "Yes, miss-Adora," he said hastily. "But where should we go?"

Adora picked up the stick that she had thrown earlier and looked towards the forest. Her lips twisted out in a stubborn pout. "I don't think we've got a choice."

Behlem made a loud squeaking noise. "But what about...?" His voice trailed off as he looked back toward the door that they had emerged from earlier.

"I don't like the idea either, but I think that's where we might find Eve." With a determined look on her face, she set off towards the forest's edge, Behlem protesting loudly as he followed her.

A minute after Adora and Behlem entered the forest, there was a flash of light. The Cyclops stirred as the light's glow faded and he sat up to look into Aer's eyes. "Did I do well, my lady?" he asked once he had risen to his feet.

Aer smirked. "Better than I could've expected. It's just a matter of time now... In the meantime, I must join the others as we attend to our business on Earth. Go - and I will make sure that you are rewarded handsomely for your services."

"Yes, my lady," the Cyclops replied. He bowed once before lumbering off in the other direction.

Aer watched the Cyclops leave and grinned wickedly before she too left the clearing.


	27. Chapter 27

Part 27:

Eve quietly approached the doorway, slowly stuck her head outside and looked in both directions before exiting the room where she had been held prisoner. She cautiously walked down the hall at first so as not to attract unwanted attention, but soon she found herself running at top speed through a maze of halls and rooms. A flash of light caught her eye and she skidded to a stop, panting a little from her running.

Eve turned her head in both directions before walking over to what appeared to be a stone door from which a small patch of sunlight leaked through. "This has got to be a trap of some sort," she muttered as she leaned up against the door to begin pushing it open. "But it seems I've got no choice but to try and get out of here," she grunted.

It took her a little bit of time, but Eve was eventually able to push the doorway open enough for her to squeeze through it. "This is too weird!" she said as she came out into full sunlight. She placed her hand above her eyes to shade them as they readjusted and quickly looked around. Her shoulders drooped when she saw that her choices of escape were limited - back inside or else following a trail into the forest.

"What's this?" Eve murmured when she saw footprints in the dirt path. She knelt down and saw that they were fresh - and she recognized the boot-prints. "That's Dorie!" she softly exclaimed. She frowned in puzzlement when she saw the small pair of three-clawed footprints next to Adora's. She turned her head away from the path and her eyes widened when she saw signs of a struggle - and some very large footprints that had trampled the grass, but those led away from the clearing.

"I better get out of here before whatever Dorie tangled with decides to come back," Eve said as she rose to full height. She stared into the trees in front of her and the left side of her mouth curled up into a determined sneer. "Well, here goes nothing." Her hands clenched into fists as she stalked into the forest to find her friend - and whoever or whatever was traveling with her.

"No! I want to stay and fight, not hide with the children!" Joxer retorted when Xena told him what she wanted him to do.

"Joxer, be reasonable," Xena said, sighing. "You know that you've never really learned to fight."

Joxer's lips jutted out stubbornly. "I can fight!"

"Bro, why don't you try listening to Xena for once?" Jett asked in an irritated voice. "She's right. You're nothing but a big liability out there."

"Thanks a lot for taking their side - not that I expected anything different from you!" Joxer angrily exclaimed, whirling around to glare at his brother.

"Jox, you're damned lucky that you're my brother, because otherwise I'd come over and beat the living snot out of you!" Jett replied in a low and husky voice, his fists involuntarily clenching together as he returned the glare. "I might just do it anyway. It'll probably knock some sense into that pigheaded noggin you've got!"

"Both of you; stop it! Just stop it right now!" Jace stepped in front of Jett before either one of them could say anything else and gave him and then Joxer warning looks.

Jett growled low in his throat but didn't move from where he was standing while Joxer returned the glare, his own fists clenched together in uncustomary anger.

Gabrielle reached out and put her hands on her husband's shoulders and squeezed firmly but not too hard to get his attention. "Joxer, please calm down and listen to reason! This is no time to be acting so bullheaded!" She stopped for a moment, took a breath to calm herself and lowered her voice as she continued speaking. "Look: all of us know that you want to help and we appreciate it, believe me, but if you get killed, Adora dies and if she dies, Eve has no protector, and I don't think I have to say anything else, do I?"

Joxer closed his eyes and exhaled harshly. "Gabrielle, Adora is our daughter. Don't ask me not to fight for her. If Eve was here..."

"Yes Joxer, I wouldn't hesitate to fight for Eve's life, but who's going to protect the children and the others who are too sick, too young or unable to fight if you fight with us?" Xena softly interrupted. "They need-"

"If you're trying to make me feel better, it's not working!" Joxer interrupted rudely. He was about to say something else when he felt someone tugging at his hand. He looked down to see Andy looking up at him, his dark brown eyes wide and innocent.

"Please, Uncle Joxer. Stay and protect us. Daddy's going to fight and we need you," Andy said.

Joxer looked down at his nephew, who was looking up at him with unshakeable trust in his eyes and he swallowed hard. "All right, then. I'll stay with the children," he said quietly.

The others exchanged relieved glances as Xena patted him on the shoulder. "You've done your part in this battle. You and Gaston made all those rockets and I think that they're the biggest advantage we've got against an attack."

Joxer nodded. "I guess that we better leave, then." His eyes shifted to Gabrielle, who looked at him with a sad little smile on her lips. "Gabby, I..."

"I know, Joxer. I know." Gabrielle reached over and pulled his head down to give him a ferocious kiss. "Be careful!" she admonished softly when the kiss broke.

"You too," Joxer whispered. He closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against hers for a moment before straightening up and looking down at his nephew. He held his arms out and picked up Andy. "Let's go." He pointedly avoided Jett's gaze as he quickly walked past him and out the door.

As Jace was about to pass by him, Jett reached out and grabbed his wrist to get his attention. "What?"

"Make sure that he's okay," Jett said curtly before letting go.

Jace nodded once and left the house to join the others.

Jett turned around and stared out the open door until Iolaus and Hercules returned, Autolycus following behind them. He turned away then, his jaw working.

There was a moment of silence before Xena turned around with a stern expression on her beautiful features and walked over to the table. "I want everyone to take a look at the western wall," she began, pointing down at the roughly drawn town map. The others gathered around and began discussing alternative strategies to protect the town.

The little gargoyle kept looking around nervously and Adora was starting to get annoyed with his behavior. "Behlem, will you please settle down? You're getting on my nerves!"

Behlem jumped from one tree branch to another. "We're being followed," he reported nervously.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes, mistress. Somebody's following us!"

"Maybe it's a friend."

"I don't know, mistress! I'm scared. Please use your magic!"

Adora closed her eyes and sighed in exasperation. "I told you that it's not time to use it - and I don't know why, so don't bother asking me again! Why don't you climb up that tree and see who's following us?" she suggested.

"Yes mistress," the gargoyle said, immediately scrambling up the tree to obey her.

"And Behlem?"

"Yes, mistress?"

"STOP CALLING ME MISTRESS!" Adora yelled.

"No, mistress! You'll be heard!" Behlem wailed.

"I DON'T CARE..." Adora began to say when the two of them could hear somebody running towards them and the gargoyle whimpered. "Shh! Calm down!" she muttered, picking up a nearby stick to defend herself and her odd little companion.

"Dorie! Dorie! Is that you?"

"They heard you, mistress! They're coming for us!" Behlem squeaked as he dropped to the ground with a thud.

"No, it's Eve!" Adora replied, dropping the stick on the ground. "Eve! Eve! Over here!"

"Dorie, don't move!" Eve yelled. "I'll be right there!"

Behlem quickly hid by ducking into the shadows, his skin somehow changing so that he effortlessly blended into the forest cover.

Adora's face broke into a smile as Eve crashed through the bushes and ran straight over to her. "Dorie, I'm so glad you're okay!" she exclaimed, pulling her friend into a fierce embrace.

"Me too, Eve. Me too," Adora replied, returning the embrace. "It seems like I've been looking for you forever..."

"Do you know how to get out of here?" Eve asked curiously as she took in their surroundings.

Adora shook her head and made a sour face. "No, but I'm sure Behlem does."

Eve frowned. "Behlem? Who's Behlem?"

Adora snorted derisively and rolled her eyes in disgust. "You're in for a real big treat, trust me!" She turned around and yelled, "Come out of hiding, you little coward! For somebody's that's supposed to be protecting me from harm, you completely suck at it!"

Eve watched in silent astonishment as what looked like a rock slowly gained feet, legs, arms, hands, a body and finally a head. Her jaw dropped open and she actually made a squeaking noise. "What is THAT!" she gasped when she was able to speak again.

Behlem ran behind Adora. "Protect me, mistress!" he begged.

Adora laughed and shook her head. "Evie, I'd like you to meet my, uh, protector and guide, Behlem... Behlem, this is my best friend, Eve."

Both stared at each other for a moment before Behlem finally said in an awestruck voice, "My apologies, my lady. I didn't realize that... you are The One." He bowed stiffly as he spoke.

Eve rolled her eyes at Behlem's words. "Uh, yeah. Whatever."

"Okay... Now that that's settled, let's find a way out of here," Adora said as she began walking away.

"Mistress, wait for me!"

"Hey, wait for me too!" The two scurried after Adora, who turned around to wait for them with a tiny smile on her lips. Once they had caught up with her, they continued their way through the forest, looking for a way out.

Joxer and Gaston sat down on a rock in the cave where they took the children and everyone else that couldn't fight. "I know I told Xena that I'd stay here and I will, Gaston," he sighed as he cradled his head in his hands. Jace looked up from where he was helping an elderly woman get comfortable and looked troubled when he saw the sad expression on his brother's face, knowing that it wasn't just staying in the cave that was bothering him. He turned back to the woman and smiled reassuringly at her, but listened intently as Joxer continued speaking. "It's just..."

"That you feel helpless, no?"

"Yeah, I feel helpless - that I could do more than just sit and hide out in a cave," Joxer replied in a low voice.

Gaston shook his head. "You're doing a lot more than I am, Joxer. We're all depending on you - the children, your mother, your brother and everybody else in here."

"But what good am I to them?"

Gaston gazed at Joxer solemnly. "Your mere presence brings us courage."

Joxer stared at Gaston in disbelief before turning to look over at Jace, who smiled and nodded in encouragement. He then turned around to look at everybody else and saw that Gaston was right. They were depending on him - and he wasn't about to let them down, either.

Joxer stood up then and cleared his throat. "Okay then. We've got to get this cave secured..." He turned to look at his brother, who nodded. "Jace, get someone to help you with securing the entrance."

Jace nodded, rose to his feet and headed towards the cave entrance with a couple of the townspeople following behind him. Joxer then turned towards Ioannes and Stephanos, who were the oldest children in the cave and had been assigned to help Joxer rather than fight. "Okay, you two. I'd like you and Stephanos to get some folks to help you with making some kind of additional weaponry and gathering together any that we've already got here just in case we'll need them, because if anybody gets past Xena and company, we're going to need any protection that we've got. Also, we need to start laying some traps..."

As the boys went off to do their assigned tasks, Jezda placed her hand on Joxer's arm. "I pray to the Gods that we'll be safe."

Bitter laughter rang out in the cave. "The Gods? You've got to be kidding me! What a crock, Jezda! The Gods are the ones that are causing all this trouble in the first place! Pray that they will keep us safe? We'll be lucky if we make it out of this place alive - and if we do, it won't be because of them!" a woman, who had just finished settling her little boy in, yelled before she sat down on a blanket and turned her head so that she faced the wall.

Jezda was about to retort sharply when she saw Joxer shaking his head and she nodded. She went over to help another mother and her children instead and he sighed as he went to see if there was anybody else in the cave that needed help.

"Father, please go to the cave! It's too dangerous to stay here!" Gabrielle pleaded.

Herodotus shook his head. "No! I belong here with you."

"Why? So you can die? Please go to where you'll be safe!"

Herodotus stared down at his daughter. "Tell me, Gabrielle. Exactly how is a cave going to protect us from the Gods?"

Gabrielle looked taken aback at his words for a moment before she said, "It'll buy you time."

Herodotus laughed harshly at Gabrielle's words. "Are you serious? I'd rather die now trying to protect my family than to wait to die while hiding in a cave..."

"But you won't be alone! Joxer, Mother and Lila are there!"

Herodotus looked deep into Gabrielle's eyes. "But you won't be there and there's no way in Tartarus that I'd let my oldest daughter die without any family near."

"But..." Gabrielle looked at Xena for support but she was too busy talking to Hercules, Iolaus, Jett and Autolycus. "Listen, I appreciate everything that you're saying, I honestly do! But Father, you're making a mistake - a big mistake by staying here!"

Herodotus shook his head. "I don't think so, Gabrielle. Not this time."

The forest seemed to go on forever and it looked like it was beginning to get dark. Eve had her arm over Adora's shoulder while Adora carried a sleeping Behlem in her arms.  
"Is he heavy? He looks like you're carrying a rock that's somehow come to life," Eve said.

"No, he's not heavy at all, believe it or not," Adora replied.

Eve nodded. "Okay, but if your arms get tired and you want to take a break, let me know."

"I will. Thanks."

The two walked in uneasy silence for a little while and came to a halt when they came upon a large tree that blocked the path. Eve carefully climbed over the obstacle and jumped down on the other side. "Dorie, hand Behlem over to me so you can climb over," she said.

"Okay." Being careful not to wake him up, Adora carefully handed the sleeping gargoyle over to Eve, who carefully settled him into her arms. She then climbed atop the log and jumped down, landing on her feet with a thud. "Ouch! That was higher than I exp..." Her voice trailed off when they heard a strange noise that sounded like it came from above them. "What in Tartarus was that?"

"Dunno..."

An unearthly scream suddenly ripped through the air and they both gasped when several small monkey-sized creatures that appeared to be made from fire appeared and began dropping from the trees.

"WHAT ARE THEY?" Adora yelled, her eyes wide with fright.

Behlem woke up then and began screaming in terror as even more creatures appeared.

"I don't know, but we better get out of here and fast"  
The two took off in a run as the howling creatures pursued them, flinging fire bolts at them as they ran. Eve yelped when a bolt passed by too close for comfort and slightly singed her hair.

Adora suddenly stopped in the middle of the path and turned towards a small stream that was nearby. Murmuring softly as she concentrated, she raised her hands, pointing them towards the water. She raised her arms then and the water arced up from the stream and rained down upon her, Eve, Behlem and the fire-creatures, transforming them into steam. Howls filled the air as each creature met its watery death and when the last one changed to steam, Adora collapsed to the ground in exhaustion.

"MISTRESS, NO!" Behlem squeaked as he scurried towards her.

Eve easily ran past Behlem and knelt down next to her dazed friend. "Dorie! Dorie, are you all right?"

Adora nodded slowly as Eve helped her sit up. "I'm all right. I'm just a little dizzy."

"Let me help you up. We can't stay here - way too dangerous. Behlem, get on my back and I'll piggyback you out of here. We'll need to have our hands free from now on," Eve said.

Behlem looked over at Adora, who nodded wearily. Satisfied that it was okay to do so, he scrambled onto Eve's back, putting his little arms around her neck.

"Hey! Not so tight!" Eve exclaimed as she helped Adora up.

"My apologies, my lady," Behlem replied, loosening his hold on her neck.

"The name's Eve."

"Yes, my lady."

Adora smiled slightly and shook her head when Eve draped her arm across her shoulders as they restarted their journey.

Gaston slowly helped Joxer to his feet. "Are you all right?"

Hecuba came over with a concerned look on her face. Gabrielle had told her and Lila about Joxer and Adora's connection before they had departed for the cave. "It's Adora, isn't it?"

Joxer nodded slowly and blinked hard to re-focus his eyes. "Yes, I felt her. She's close by. I'm not sure how near she is, but she's around here somewhere."

"Then go find her, son. We'll be safe. She may need you."

"Are you sure?"

Hecuba put her hand on Joxer's shoulder. "Gaston's right. You need to find the girls. They may be in some type of trouble that only you can help them get out of."

Joxer looked at the others and they nodded in agreement. He nodded and smiled at Gaston, who returned it. "Thanks." He began running towards the cave's entrance with a determined expression on his face.

Jace turned around as he heard someone running towards him and his eyes widened in alarm when he saw the look on Joxer's face. "Little brother, what's the matter? Where are you going?"

"It's Dorie! She's around here - and stop calling me that!" Joxer yelled over his shoulder, never faltering as he ran past Jace towards the cavern's entrance.

"Little brother, wait up! WAIT FOR ME!" Jace cried and took off after his brother in a dead run. He followed him outside the cave and his mouth opened in horror as Joxer vanished before his eyes. "JOXER, NO!"

Jace heard footsteps behind him and he turned around just as Hecuba, Jezda, Gaston, and Lila came outside.

"What happened? Where's Joxer?" Jezda asked, putting her hand on Jace's arm.

Jace's shoulders slumped forward. "He... disappeared right in front of my eyes."

"What?" Lila asked, round-eyed with shock. "But... Where do you think he could possibly be?"

"I don't know," he said with a mournful sigh. "I only hope that he's with Dorie and Evie." He turned away from them then, closing his eyes as his face twisted in grief. Little brother...


	28. Chapter 28

Part 28:

As Joxer ran from the cave, Jace yelling at him as he followed close behind, his vision blurred and he couldn't hear his brother's voice. Everything seemed to turn dark then and the air grew heavy as he breathed.

When Joxer's vision cleared a few minutes later and the air returned to normal, he found himself standing in the middle of a strange forest. "Hey, what's going on?" he muttered as he looked down at himself. He lifted his head and just a short distance away from him, Adora, Eve and a strange little creature that appeared to be made of living rock that Eve was carrying piggyback style were staring at him with wide, astonished eyes.

Adora took one cautious step forward. "Papa?" she asked uncertainly. "Is it really you?"

Joxer smiled and nodded.

With a joy-filled shout, Adora ran over to Joxer, Eve following close behind her once Behlem scrambled down from her back. The gargoyle watched in silence with large, round eyes as the three had a brief reunion.

"I'm so glad to see the two of you and that you're both okay, but why are you soaking wet?" Joxer asked after giving them both a huge embrace.

"We were attacked by some strange fire creatures, Uncle Joxer. Dorie stopped them by using her powers," Eve explained softly. She pointed over to the nearby stream to show him.

"I see," Joxer said, realizing that that was how their connection had been reestablished.

Adora turned away then, mumbling, "I suppose I'm in trouble for using my powers."

Joxer shook his head. "No, Dorie. You did the right thing in trying to protect Eve, yourself, and your, uh, rocky little friend over there," he said, peering down at Behlem curiously.

The gargoyle bristled at Joxer's last words and put his tiny clawed hands on his hips. "My lady Brigandu has charged me with the very important duty of protecting her granddaughter!" he squeaked indignantly, stamping his right foot for emphasis.

"Well, you're pretty rot... OW!" Adora yelped when Eve quickly stepped on her left foot to prevent her from saying anything else. She glared at Eve before turning to gaze at a very perplexed-looking Joxer. "Behlem, this is my father."

"But... But... But, mistress...! Your father..." Behlem began to protest, but stopped when he saw the furious expression on Adora's face. "It is an honor to meet you," he finally said, bowing slightly.

Joxer's eyebrows disappeared underneath his bangs. "Um... Thank you." He looked up at the darkening sky. "I think we better try to get out of here before we can't see."

Behlem jumped up and down in excitement. "Mistress, I can help!" he exclaimed.

The three exchanged amused glances. "Okay. How?" Adora asked skeptically.

"Watch, mistress!" Behlem closed his eyes, held his hands in front of him and cupped them in a circle. As he concentrated, a small, round glowing ball eventually appeared and cast a soft light around them, making it easy for them to see. It floated away from his hands where it rose up until it was a little bit higher than Joxer's head and stayed there. "See?"

"That's great!" Adora smiled at Behlem, who returned it happily. "Let's get out of here before anything else tries to attack us."

The others nodded in agreement and they began walking down the path to see if they could find a way out of the forest.

"So... Your pop still won't leave, huh?" Autolycus asked Gabrielle as they approached the northern wall, following a short distance behind Xena and Jett.

Gabrielle sighed. "No. When my father makes his mind up, he can be very stub..." She stopped talking when he snorted with laughter. "What's so funny?"

"Never mind, Gabrielle," Autolycus replied with a smirk, which quickly changed to a frown when he almost ran into Jett, who had stopped in the middle of the path. "Hey! What's the deal?"

Jett put his hand over his forehead. "Something's wrong..." he growled. "...And it's something to do with Jox."

Gabrielle's eyes widened in alarm. "Are you sure?"

Jett nodded curtly, his head turning in the direction of the caves. He started to step away from the others.

Xena grabbed his arm before he could leave and quickly turned him around to face her. "You're needed here, Jett," she said sternly, the expression on her face silently daring him to defy her.

Jett pulled his arm from Xena's grasp, his nostrils flaring out angrily. "Don't push your luck, Xe...!" he began saying when an arrow whistled just over their heads and stuck in the ground right behind them.

Xena's eyes widened and she ran towards the wall, drawing her sword as more arrows came over the side and the sounds of clashing swords, battle cries and the screams of the wounded and dying started.

Gabrielle took off after her friend, sais at the ready.

Jett stood still, his body stiff as he watched the women running.

Autolycus grabbed Jett's arm to get his attention. "Come on! Are you going to just stand there and get yourself killed, or are you gonna help us?" he yelled, his face literally inches away from Jett's.

Jett didn't say anything but the look on his face was enough to make Autolycus gulp and release his grip. He took one last look in the direction where his brothers, mother and son were before he withdrew his sword from the scabbard and ran towards the wall, Autolycus right next to him.

The four traveled down the path, hoping to find a way out from the dense forest. The light Behlem created glowed softly as it lit the path so they could see and it seemed to be leading them to safety. Joxer walked ahead of the girls and their strange little companion to (hopefully) protect them from danger. They had walked for some time when he came to a sudden stop in the middle of the path. The girls managed to stop just in time before they walked into him.

Joxer frowned as he looked around. He didn't know what was wrong, exactly, but he had a strange feeling that something wasn't right either.  
"Uncle Joxer? What's wrong?" Eve asked in a concerned voice.

"Yes, Papa. What's...?"

Joxer placed a finger over his lips to signal them to be quiet and when he spoke, it was in a hushed voice. "I know I don't have your mother's sixth sense, Evie, but I feel that something's very wrong. Stay close and..."

"Why? So you can protect them? The whole concept of you protecting them from harm would be extremely amusing if the idea wasn't so pathetic at the same time," a deep, smooth voice observed. There was a flash of bluish-white light and Teutales appeared before them with a smirk on his darkly handsome features. He looked at Joxer appraisingly before he added in mockingly, "Hello, lover."

Behlem ran behind Adora and peeked out from between her legs. "Mistress, save me!" he wailed.

They stared at Teutales for a few moments before Joxer finally spoke up, his voice shaking - not from fear, but from sheer anger. "I'm not your lover! I'm your worst nightmare!" he snarled. He stood in front of the girls in a fighting stance ready to take the God on.

Teutales laughed, clearly amused at Joxer's words. "You're right, little man. You're not my lover," he admitted before his face grew serious. "You're just the stupid fool that got in my way."

Adora's nostrils flared as her own temper stirred to a fine boil. "Don't you dare call my father a stupid fool! He's got more integrity in his mortal heart than you'll ever have in your little toe! He didn't ask you to plant your seed into him! He could take you on one on one - and he'd WIN!"

Eve grabbed Adora's arm. "Are you out of your mind? Uncle Joxer's no fighter - and he's not immortal. He wouldn't stand a chance against him! Are you trying to get him killed with your boasting? One good zap and he's toast!"

"She's right, mistress! Your friend's right. He has no chance against Teutales!" Behlem exclaimed. His face twisted up in worry as he looked back and forth between the girls, a furious Joxer and a very smug Teutales.

Joxer felt his heart sink when he heard Eve's words, but Adora shouted over Behlem's anxious squeaking. "I believe in you, Papa! You're my hero! You can take this jerk down! I love you, Papa."

Eve looked at Joxer and saw something stirring in his eyes - something that she had only seen in her mother's eyes before and felt ashamed of what she had said. "Dorie's right, Uncle Joxer. You can take this idiot down!"

Teutales laughed at the two girls. "They're so young and foolish! Are they not anything but vessels that simply serve different purposes?" His eyes flicked in Adora's direction and she visibly flinched, averting her face away from him. His gaze then passed over Eve briefly and she felt her mouth go dry before he refocused his attention on Joxer, a mocking smile hovering about his lips.

Joxer swallowed hard, but he straightened himself up to full height and defiantly returned the God's stare. "No. They believe in me," he replied in a soft yet determined voice.

The smile turned deadly. "You'll need more than their misguided faith in you to save your miserable life, little man!" Teutales yelled as he conjured up a fireball and threw it at Joxer. 

Somehow, Joxer just barely managed to avoid the fireball by dropping to the ground and rolling away. It sizzled past his ear and landed on a nearby boulder, which immediately smashed into smithereens upon impact. Rubble rained over the girls and Behlem, who were forced to raise their arms over their heads in a futile effort to protect themselves from the debris.

"Pretty impressive for a mortal waste of space!" Fireball after fireball shot from the furious War God's hands, gathering speed as they kept coming, but Joxer somehow avoided those as well.

Finally, the fireballs stopped and Teutales stared down at the heavily panting Joxer with a disgusted sneer. "Someone is helping you out, scum," he growled through clenched teeth. "And when I..." Before he finished his sentence, his head shot upright and his eyes widened in sudden realization. They flashed with a bright bluish-white light as his face twisted with fury and he disappeared into the ether without another word.

Adora and Eve ran over to Joxer and helped him to his feet.

"You did it, Papa! I knew that you could!" Adora exclaimed, throwing her arms around Joxer, who hugged her to him.

Eve smiled and said admiringly, "You really did great, Uncle Joxer."

Joxer smiled wearily as he put his arm around Eve's shoulders. "Thanks, you two, but I really didn't do that much. I just managed to get lucky, that's all."

"Papa, he was throwing those fireballs at top speed! We could hardly see them. They should've burned you to a crisp."

Joxer looked at his daughter. "But they didn't because you two believed in me." He looked around then, frowning. "I think that Teutales was right, though. Someone was helping me because there's no way that I ever could've... "

Behlem suddenly jumped up and down, trying to grab Adora's hand. "Look, mistress! Look! There's a way out of here! Come, mistress! We're free!" he exclaimed excitedly, pointing wildly to the right.

The three turned in the direction that the gargoyle was pointing in and saw that he was right. Not only was it a way out of the forest, but it seemed to be the way back home.

"Come on! Let's get out of here before he decides to come back and start up where he left off," Joxer said.

Behlem scrambled onto Adora's back and the three ran towards the opening and into the darkness. There was that same sensation Joxer had experienced before when he had found his way to Adora and Eve and this time, it almost overwhelmed him. Just as the air seemed about to suffocate them, they burst through the other side and found themselves right in the midst of a battle.

Behlem's eyes grew huge and he screeched, "MISTRESS! WE'RE DOOMED!"

No sooner had the gargoyle uttered those words when a flaming arrow hurtled directly towards a still somewhat disoriented Eve.

"EVE!" Xena screamed, raising her chakram to throw it when Joxer suddenly reached out and clumsily pushed Eve aside, tripping over a rock as he did so. The two fell to the ground as the arrow whistled past them and landed a short distance away.

While the two slowly rose to a sitting position with Adora's help, Xena yelled in their direction as she turned her attention back to a soldier using a makeshift ladder that was attempting to climb over the wall. "JOXER, I DON'T KNOW HOW ALL OF YOU GOT HERE..." A well-aimed kick straight to the midsection sent the would-be invader, his companions that were climbing up the ladder behind him and the ladder tumbling backwards, all of them yelling as they fell. "...BUT I WANT YOU, THEM AND THAT... THAT THING TO GET TO SAFETY!" Sparks flew as her sword clashed into another opponent's.

"I AM NOT A THING!" Behlem screeched resentfully. "I'M..."

"SHUT UP!" Adora hollered and the gargoyle's mouth closed with an audible snap.

"C'mon. Let's just get out of here!" Joxer exclaimed urgently, looking up at the wall with a worried expression on his face. He saw the tips of Gabrielle's sais flash as they swiftly arced down towards her opponent's weapon and he swallowed hard, wishing he was fighting alongside her - and that she would make it through the battle.

As they began moving away from the fighting, Xena spared them a quick glance. Her eyes met Joxer's and he saw in them silent thanks for helping Eve. He bowed his head slightly in reply before he took off after the girls in an awkward run, quickly catching up with them. As they ran, the first rocket volley shot over their heads and the air grew rank from burnt Chin powder. The force of the blast as the rockets hit their intended targets nearly knocked them from their feet.

Eyes tearing from the smoke and coughing to clear his lungs, Joxer found it increasingly difficult to breathe and see. He stumbled ahead until he finally tripped over something as a sharp pain raced through his temples, making him cry out. He fell forward blindly, trying to gulp breaths of increasingly oppressive air while his head felt like it was going to explode. He blinked one last time then knew no more...


	29. Chapter 29

Part 29:

"Are you all right?" Jezda ran over to Jace, who plopped down atop a boulder and stuck his head between his legs. Gaston followed behind her and watched mother and son interacting with a concerned look on his face.

Jace slowly raised his head, eyes eventually refocusing on Jezda's face. "I'm all right, Mother," he said softly.

"No you're not!" Jezda retorted. "You're as white as a ghost and you nearly passed out..." She straightened up in realization. "It was Joxer, wasn't it?"

Jace nodded once, wincing as his temples pounded mercilessly. "I haven't felt something like that in a long time, at least not that strongly..." His hand shook slightly as he lifted it up and placed it over his brow. "I'll be okay. I just need..."

They looked up when they heard the sound of somebody running towards them. It was Stephanos, his eyes wide with worry. "People are coming!" he reported. "We can see the torches in the distance! They're heading straight towards here..."

Lila turned around sharply at the boy's words. "Are you sure? How many?"

Stephanos nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure! They've got weapons..." He thought for a moment. "Ioannes and I counted about two hundred people, but there could be more..."

Hecuba looked around at the children, nursing mothers, and people who were simply too old or too sick to fight before turning back to look at the small group that was assembled around Jace. "What are we going to do?" she asked. "We may be able to stall them for a little while with those traps that were laid around the hillside earlier, but they'll be able to get through them eventually..."

There was a short silence as Jace closed his eyes, his lips pursing into a tight line of determination. He slowly rose to his feet and walked over to a bag that he had carried with him. He knelt down and rummaged inside it for a minute before pulling out a rapier sheathed inside a leather scabbard that had intricate stitching running down the sides. He looked down at the weapon in his hands and shook his head once. "The last time I used this was to fight Father," he murmured, his accent disappearing. "I promised myself that I'd never use it again after that." He looked up then with a grim look on his face. "It's time to break that promise."

Jezda nodded solemnly. "I know, but you can't fight by yourself, my son."

Gaston drew himself up to full height as he patted the sword hanging at his hip. "He won't."

"That's right." Lila glanced sideways at her mother. "The two of us are pretty handy with frying pans..."

Jace looked at the older children and their mothers starting to gather around him with determined expressions on their faces and assorted weapons in their hands. He smiled slightly at Lila's remark. "Hopefully we won't have to go to that extreme, but I've got a few ideas that should slow them down further..."

"You're insane!" The woman who had yelled at them earlier rose to her feet. "These are children and you're expecting them to FIGHT?"

Jezda started to say something, but Jace raised his hand as he turned around to look at the woman. "I'd never expect any of the children to fight. I'm not asking any of them to do this, nor would I ever force them to fight, Beryl. I grew up like that and it's a terrible way to live." He paused for a moment and took a second look at the rapier, sighing once before turning his attention back to her. "But there's a time to take a stand and fight for what you believe in, too. This is one of those times..."

Beryl turned away from his searching gaze. "I think you're just setting yourselves up to be killed," she muttered.

"Maybe," Jace agreed. "But it's better to try and defend ourselves rather than simply doing nothing at all and letting them come and get us." He cleared his throat once and said, "Let's go." His gaze refocused on Jezda. "Mother, can you and some of the others get everybody else further back in the cave?"

"Yes, of course..." Her dark eyes shimmered with tears for a split second before they were resolutely blinked away. "Be careful," she added in as she embraced him.

"I will." Jace returned the hug and smiled sadly as he watched her and Gaston share a brief kiss. "Ready?" he asked.

Gaston nodded. "Oui, mon ami!"

As the group began walking towards the cavern entrance, the ones who had to stay behind began picking up their belongings to move further back inside and helped the people who needed assistance.

Jezda walked over to Beryl, who was gathering her sleeping son up in her arms. "Beryl..."

"Get away from me, Jezda!" Beryl snarled, her face turning ugly as it twisted into an expression of sheer fury. "Just get away!"

Jezda's own temper flared briefly, but she calmed down when she realized that it was Beryl's fear talking. "All right, but please come back with the rest of us," she softly replied before turning around to see if she could help someone.

Beryl watched the others in silence as they left the main part of the cave and headed further inside, eventually leaving her in complete darkness.

"Good," she said with a smile, her eyes flashing a bright yellow-green as she threw off her mortal disguise. Aer shook her hair into place and looked down at the boulder she held in her arms, which she easily threw aside and licked her lips in anticipation. "Two useless mortals out of my way, and with all of those other mortal scum coming this way, I won't have to soil my hands with getting rid of them either..." She gazed down the passage where the rest had gone and her smile widened. "That's pretty tempting as well, but I've got better fish to fry..."

"That's what you think, hosebag!" a melodious voice rang out.

Aer turned around just as a large pink fireball hit her directly in the chest, slamming her straight into the cavern wall. Momentarily stunned, she looked up to see a beautiful blonde woman glaring down at her, wearing nothing but a pink negligee, a matching silk robe and fuzzy high-heeled slippers. She began laughing in sheer disbelief. "You - the legendary Olympic Floatation Device - want to take me on? What a joke!" The air sizzled as a bluish-white fireball shot from her fingertips.

Aphrodite dodged the fireball easily and deflected it back towards Aer. "Like puh-leeze! I could so take you out and not even break a nail while doing it!" she scoffed.

"Oh? Really? I wouldn't be so sure of that, you air-headed bimbo!" Still laughing, Aer easily slipped away from the re-directed fireball and shot three more at the Love Goddess.

One of them got close enough to slightly singe Aphrodite's robe and she screeched, "OOOO! THAT DOES IT! YOU SO LIKE TOTALLY RUINED MY ONE-OF-A-KIND VICTORIUS SECRETUS, YOU SKANK!" The air buzzed as she powered up and shot a massive fireball at Aer, who found herself slammed against the wall with rocks falling down around her.

Aer blinked, trying to recollect herself while Aphrodite smiled winsomely at her. "Not so air-headed as you thought I was, huh, scumbag?" she asked, lifting up a dainty long-fingered hand to admire her manicure. "You just don't know who you're dealing with here, sis...!" She let out a surprised screech when she suddenly flew across the cavern and smacked straight into the wall.

Aer's mocking laughter rang out as a visibly stunned Aphrodite slowly got to her feet, brushing the dust away from her face. "Apparently, you don't know who you're dealing with either!" she gloated and then she made a rude noise. "You're the best that Zeus could send after ME? How completely pathetic you Olympians are! It's gonna be a pleasure seeing your weak asses get exiled!" She laughed again before disappearing in a yellowish-green flash of light.

"Oh no you don't, you sleazebucket! You're so not getting away with messing up my outfit - and we're not going anywhere! 'Sides, I've got your signature now so I can track your hairy-backed hide down and finish what we started!" Aphrodite growled as she disappeared in a golden shimmer.

Jezda, having heard the commotion, arrived just in time to see the two Goddesses depart from the cave. "Aer..." she breathed, her eyes growing wide in recognition when she saw the War Goddess vanish. "That explains so much..." She lifted her head up when she heard shouts coming from outside the cave, followed up with the sound of boulders being rolled down the hill overhead. "Oh no!" She turned around and began running back towards the cave's rear, silently hoping that everyone fighting out front would be safe. 

"I've got you!" Autolycus shouted, grabbing Jett's arm before he fell down. He steadied his friend, noting how pale he was. "What's the matter?"

"Jox..." Jett mumbled as sweat broke out on his forehead and began pouring down his face in torrents. "Something's wrong..."

"The only thing that's wrong is you almost passing out!" Autolycus retorted, instinctively ducking his head as the second volley of Chin-powdered rockets flew over the wall.

"GET HIM DOWN FROM THERE BEFORE HE GETS BOTH OF YOU KILLED, AUTOLYCUS!" Xena yelled, her eyes never leaving her opponent, who raised his weapon up to deliver a deadly blow. Sparks flew as their swords met with a resounding crash.

Autolycus started to pull Jett away from the fighting, but Jett pushed him away, making him fall on his back. His still-pale face twisted up in a rage-filled sneer that made the thief gulp. He watched, mesmerized, as Jett raised his sword up and he whirled around, silently slitting a would-be invader's throat and nearly decapitating him in the process.

As the man fell back from the wall, dead, Jett, his face splattered with blood that had spurted from the man's jugular vein, reached down and roughly pulled Autolycus to his feet. He was still sweating profusely but some of the color had returned to his face. "I'm not going anywhere," he said in a low and raspy voice. "And when I find the bastards trying to hurt Bro, they'll wish that they were never born..."

Autolycus licked his lips, not liking the maniacal look in Jett's eyes, which was something he hadn't seen in a long, long time. "Right!" he agreed nervously. His eyes widened when he saw movement just to the right of them. "Look...!"

Jett whirled around again and delivered a kick that knocked the sword away from a man who had actually succeeded in getting over the wall. With a yell as he pulled a long dagger from his boot, the man launched himself at the ex-assassin, who was waiting for him with a thin smile on his lips.

Autolycus turned away from the two men as they engaged in vicious hand-to-hand combat and dodged out of the way just before a blade arced towards his face and ended up slicing his shirtsleeve instead. "That does it! Now I'm really getting mad!" he yelled as he sprang towards his attacker, sword at the ready. His yells blended in with the others as the fighting continued on into the night.

Lightning flashed in the nighttime sky, followed by the crack of thunder. A short distance away in the opposite direction, an answering bolt flew back towards the spot where the first bolt had come from.

"There goes good old Dad," Hercules grunted, his nose wrinkling as the scent of Chin powder lingered in the air.

"Looks like that's not just Zeus that's up there shooting off his mouth," Iolaus noted as he pulled an arrow from his quiver, lit it and shot it over the other side of the barrier.

Hercules snickered and watched as a fireball shot over their heads and into the crowd of invaders, scattering them about in all directions as they ran away from it. "HEY!" he yelled when another one whizzed by his ear at a distance too close for comfort. His head whirled around, his fists clenching together involuntarily as he glared at Ares, who was gazing at him with a not-too-innocent expression on his face. "Watch where you're aiming those things!" he ground out through clipped lips.

Ares shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "Oops?" He laughed heartily as he shot another fireball into the crowd.

Hercules rolled his eyes in exasperation as he turned around. "Ladies and gentlemen, my half-brother the comedian," he growled, bracing himself as five armed men launched themselves at him. 


	30. Chapter 30

Part 30:

Joxer's eyes shot open as he drew in one harsh breath and he immediately began choking and gagging. He dimly realized that he was lying on a stone floor in some type of chamber as he coughed until he was finally able to catch his breath.

"D-Dorie? E-E-Evie?" Joxer's voice was a harsh, unrecognizable croak. He coughed once more as he slowly sat up and blinked several times while he took in his surroundings. "Where are you?"

"Papa..." Adora's voice was soft, close by, and very frightened-sounding.

"I'm here too, Uncle Joxer." Eve's voice was steadier than Adora's was, but strained.

Joxer rubbed his still-burning eyes and stumbled to his feet. As he turned around, he saw that both of the girls were chained to the wall by their wrists and ankles, as was Behlem, who was vainly trying to pull away from the wall. He clumsily ran over to them. "I've got to get you out of here!" he gasped, desperately looking around for some type of key to unlock the shackles.

"Don't even bother attempting to try and free them, human," a deadly calm voice interrupted.

Joxer turned around and his eyes widened in surprise as a tall blonde Goddess with icy blue eyes entered the room, pulling a chained-up Brigandu in her wake. "You were the one who was helping me," he murmured.

Brigandu nodded and was about to say something when Teutales appeared, an ugly sneer marring his darkly handsome features. "Yes. My own mother betrayed me for her precious humans rather than siding with her family!" he snarled.

"My son, you're making..." Brigandu began.

"ENOUGH OF YOUR PITIFUL EXCUSES, MOTHER!" Teutales roared, his voice loud enough to shake the walls and send shivers down Adora's and Eve's spines. He turned around and he smiled as his eyes met Joxer's. "This ends now," he murmured before suddenly turning around and he slammed a bolt right in Adora's stomach, making her scream in agony and Joxer fell to his knees, yelling from the pain as his hands clutched at his head.

"DORIE!" Eve yelled, fruitlessly trying to pull herself free from her bonds. "UNCLE JOXER!"

"Her connection's merely been severed from the vessel," Abnoba observed coldly as she turned to gaze at Eve briefly. "Now stop your screaming before I give you something to scream about, mortal scum!"

"Time to take care of something that I should've done a long time ago - and my plans for you, my daughter, are finally coming to bear fruit," Teutales said with a smile as he shot a massive fireball straight at Joxer, who was trying to stand up.

Joxer let out a strangled cry as the fireball hit him directly over his heart and the force of it lifted his body up and slammed him straight into the wall. His eyes widened once before they slid shut as he fell to the ground with a sickly thump and didn't move.

"PAPA!" Adora yelled, the tears running down her face. "NO! PAPA! PLEASE BE ALL RIGHT!"

Eve stopped her struggling as she stared at Joxer's still form. "Uncle Joxer... Oh no..." A single tear fell down her cheek as she shook her head in disbelief.

Abnoba began laughing softly, the coldness of it making an involuntary shiver run down Eve's spine as she watched Teutales approach her friend with a triumphant smile on his face.

Jett let out a loud gasp, his eyes rolling up in his head before he fell down in a heap. His opponent stared down at Jett's body in surprise and yelled when he found himself falling backwards off the wall courtesy of a well-timed push from Autolycus.

Autolycus quickly knelt down next to his friend's prone figure after kicking another ladder away from the wall. "Hey! What's the...?" he yelled in Jett's ear and stopping when he realized that his friend didn't seem to be breathing. "JETT!"

From the corner of her eye, Gabrielle saw Jett fall and Autolycus desperately trying to rouse him. "Xena! Jett's down!" she yelled, her sais crashing against her opponent's sword. She wrenched it away from the man's grip and gave him a push. He fell backwards, screaming as he went down.

Another volley of rockets shot overhead as Xena yelled in reply, "I saw it! Keep fighting, Gabrielle! There's nothing else that we can do!" Instinctively, she ducked her head down as one of the rocket's trajectories fell short and exploded just outside the town's wall.

"You know what this means, don't you?" Ares sneered as he appeared in front of Gabrielle. "Joxer the Mighty Idiot's finally managed to stumble his pathetically skinny ass into something he really couldn't get himself out of this time - and he's taken his equally stupid brothers with him," he added in with a throaty chuckle.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Gabrielle screamed, plunging her sais straight into his chest.

Ares looked down at the sais and began howling with laughter. "I love it when you get angry like that - but I love it even more when she does!" he exclaimed as his eyes briefly flicked over in Xena's direction. He continued laughing as he disappeared in a white-hot flash, revealing that Gabrielle had actually stabbed another would-be attacker in the stomach.

Gabrielle didn't even flinch when she saw the man's dead eyes staring into hers. She merely yanked the sais from his guts with a sickening squishy noise and kicked the body away before going after somebody else with a furious glint in her eyes.

From the corner of her eye, Xena saw the expression on her long-time friend's face and she swallowed hard at what she saw. Her eyes then narrowed as a fierce grin appeared on her lips and she let her trademark yell fly loose while she went after her attacker with wild abandon.

Jace lay on the ground, his rapier carelessly tossed to the side. His unconscious opponent was sprawled out in the opposite direction with a head wound and a rapidly rising lump on his forehead.

Stephanos picked up the rock that he had thrown at Jace's opponent and ran over to kneel down next to him. He shook Jace gently as he exclaimed, "Jace! Jace!" He heard footsteps and he whirled around, poised to throw the rock, which he lowered when he saw it was Ioannes. "C'mon! Help me get him out of here! I can't seem to get him to wake up!"

"What in Hades' name happened?" Ioannes asked as the two of them picked up Jace's limp body and began moving away from the fighting as quickly as they could.

"Dunno! He was fighting that guy I knocked out when he suddenly clutched at his chest and fell down. I managed to throw that rock just before the guy went to stab him in the guts..." Stephanos grunted as they moved up the hill.

"Gods... He's not breathing!" Ioannes said as he glanced down at Jace.

Stephanos' face turned pale at his friend's words and he looked down at Jace, swallowing hard when he saw that Ioannes was right.

Brigandu stared at her son with a horrified expression on her face. Her eyes shifted momentarily to look at Joxer's still body, then at Adora. "What have you done?" she whispered.

Teutales' left eyebrow arched up as his mouth widely split open in an evil grin. "I've made it possible for my daughter to take care of something that should've happened a long time ago and get rid of those idiotic Olympians for good, Mother."

Brigandu shook her head, closing her eyes. "This is..." She stopped talking when a loud growling noise pierced the air. She turned her head in the direction it came from and her eyes grew wide in shock.

Behlem and Eve were staring at Adora with horrified expressions on their faces. Even Abnoba looked uneasy as she gazed at the young woman, who raised her head to stare at Teutales, who returned her gaze with a surprised look on his face.

Adora's eyes, normally a soft and gentle dark brown like Joxer's, had transformed into a blazing red glow. A breeze stirred up in the room then and gained intensity, blowing her hair around her face. Her teeth clenched down in a grimace and the shackles that held her, Eve, Behlem and Brigandu broke open with a loud clang, freeing them. Her body glowed with a strange bright light and her feet began rising from the floor. "You took away the most important person in my life, you bastard - and you'll pay for that!" she said in a low voice as a soft humming noise pierced the air and grew in strength.

Teutales took a step back and raised his arm. A fireball appeared in his hand and he threw it at her. She took a direct hit but it ricocheted away from her and harmlessly crashed into the wall. He threw another one, as did Abnoba, but both fireballs were easily deflected away.

"I am Eve's protector - the one who will bring peace and destroy the Gods - the Gods of Gaul," Adora continued over the now-howling wind. "I have that power to give her - and there's no way that you'll stop me from doing it!" With those words, she began spinning around in midair and a lightning blast shot from her fingertips, hitting Eve, who rose off the floor as the bolt hit her.

Eve gasped loudly as power flowed through her body and she stared down at Teutales, who leered at her.

"Do you think that you'll be able to stop ME, you stupid mortal?" he yelled, immediately tossing several fireballs in her direction, as did Abnoba. The smile left his face when the fireballs easily deflected off her and fizzled into nothing.

"My lady, do something!" Behlem begged Brigandu as he peeked from behind her skirt.

Brigandu shook her head. "No. It's time," she softly replied as she watched Eve's arms slowly rise. She closed her eyes and gripped the chains that hung on the wall for purchase as the wind picked up speed.

"Time for what? MY LADY! PLEASE DO SOMETHING!" Behlem shrieked in terror. He looked up at Eve who stared down at Teutales as he and Abnoba ineffectually blasted fireballs at her.

"Blood for blood. Sacrifice for sacrifice," Eve murmured, her eyes losing focus as the power that Adora gave her flowed through her body and strengthened in its intensity until a single fiery hot lightning bolt flew from her and Adora's hands. The two bolts then combined into one huge bolt and it hit Teutales squarely in the chest, temporarily knocking him off his feet.

Teutales made a quick recovery, rose to his feet and began laughing. "You-" he started to say when he gagged. A hand flew to his throat as he began coughing and spitting up pools of dark blood. Beams of light shot from him as his body literally began disintegrating before everyone's eyes. The wind howled in the room as the light grew so intense that it was blinding and Behlem shut his eyes and hid his face in the folds of Brigandu's skirt, but not before he saw one of the beams hit Abnoba, who screamed in agony just as a vortex opened up right behind her, sucking her inside it before it closed up again as quickly as it had appeared...

Aer laughed while Aphrodite slowly rose to her feet, still stunned from a fireball that she couldn't dodge in time. "You're so pathetic!" she sneered but screeched in surprise when two huge fireballs hit her directly in the chest, sending her flying across the field and straight into a rock-covered outcropping. The rocks tumbled over her, temporarily burying her. She could hear Aphrodite's throaty laughter underneath the rubble and her temper skyrocketed. "AUUGH!" she yelled as she blasted the rocks off her body. "Now you've really made me mad, bitch!"

"Oh puh-leeze!" Aphrodite giggled when two sizzling bolts flew from her hands and more rocks rained over Aer's head even as she dodged several fire-bolts shot back at her in response. "Looks like you're losing your touch, hobag!" she taunted just before she got knocked off her feet again. She screeched in dismay and the air sizzled with electricity while the two Goddesses shot bolts at each other.

Thunder cracked overhead and rain began pouring down in buckets, although this did not affect the two as they fought viciously, yelling insults at each other the entire time. Aphrodite powered up to full strength, as did Aer. Huge energy bursts shot from their hands and they both went flying backwards as they hit each other squarely in the chest.

"Now that was like totally not cool!" Aphrodite muttered, shaking her head just before the ground began shaking underneath their feet. "HEPHIE, NOT NOW!" she yelled as they both fell down again. The shaking continued unabated and her eyes widened. "That's not him... What the heck?"

Two huge bolts shot down from the sky and hit Aer straight in the chest before she could move away. The Goddess, her body in flames from the blast, screamed a horrible, high-pitched scream that actually made Aphrodite cover her ears because it was so loud. She watched as Aer lifted a fiery hand up to her face and saw her skin burning away from bone. She continued screaming as her body burned into a pile of ash that was washed away by the driving rain. There was one last horrible cry that pierced the air before it faded into nothingness.

Aphrodite watched in wide-eyed silence as Aer's ashes washed away and shuddered once. "Whoa," she muttered as she rose to her feet and then let out a sharp gasp. "OOOHHH!" She staggered forward a few steps with her hand pressed over her heart.

A very pale-looking and wounded Cupid appeared in front of her just before she collapsed to the ground. "MOM!" he shouted, pulling her to her feet.

"Ahhh..." Aphrodite said shakily, her beautiful face twisting up with pain. "This is way bad, Cupid!" she gasped through chattering teeth. "All of the mortals... Too much at once... Overload... Need Hephie... You're hurt..."

"I know, I know! I've gotta get you outta here now!" Cupid said, holding her up as they both disappeared into the ether in a shower of golden sparkles.

As the wind died down, the thunderstorm stopped and the ground ceased shaking, everybody that was fighting looked at each other dazedly. Weapons fell to the ground one by one as the battle ground to a halt. Some began walking away to go home while others continued staring at each other in stunned silence.

"Xena, what happened?" Gabrielle asked in a faraway voice as she sheathed her sais and watched as the fighters outside the wall turned away to gather their wounded and dead or simply leave the scene. "Is it over?"

Xena turned around to look at her blood-spattered friend and swallowed hard as she shook her head once.

Gabrielle's eyes filled with tears as she returned Xena's too bright-eyed gaze. "Joxer..."

In the distance, a rooster crowed as the sun began rising up in the sky.

The two slowly came back down to the ground, both of them passing out briefly from sheer exhaustion as the last of the wind died away.

Eve eventually came to and blinked fiercely as her vision doubled briefly. She moaned softly and placed a hand over her violently churning stomach. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, desperately willing herself not to get sick. Opening her eyes again, she took in her surroundings and with a start saw that they had somehow managed to get not too far away from home and that the sun was beginning to rise in the eastern sky.

Carefully rising to a sitting position, Eve saw that a very pale-faced Adora was sitting up and staring ahead unseeingly. A short distance away from Adora, Behlem was anxiously fussing over Brigandu while she also rose to a sitting position and placed a hand over her forehead. She licked her lips and turned in the direction that Adora was staring in, hoping for a miracle.

Joxer lay a short distance away from them in a crumpled heap, unmoving.

Eve turned away then, swallowing hard while she watched Adora get up and walk over to Brigandu as she slowly rose to her feet.

"I spared you so you could bring Papa back," Adora murmured.

Brigandu shook her head slowly. "There is nothing that I can do to help him, my granddaughter."

"But you're a God!" Eve cried as she stumbled to her feet. "You must be able to bring him back!"

Brigandu sighed gently as she turned around to look at Eve. Her dark eyes were filled with regret and her beautiful face seemed - older - for some strange reason as Eve returned her gaze. "There's nothing that I'd like to do more than that, child, but you must understand that I no longer have the power to do so. I'm mortal." Before anyone could reply, she turned away and unsteadily walked off in the opposite direction, not looking back.

"My lady, come back!" Behlem squeaked. He stared up at the two girls with a desperate expression on his face. "Please help her! She's defenseless!"

Eve looked at Adora, her eyes wide with worry. "He's right! We can't just let her go off like that!"

Adora turned away and gazed down at Joxer. "We need to take Papa home. She knows where we'll be if she wants to join us," she said distantly.

"Dorie, she's coming with us," Eve replied, her voice turning steely with barely held-back anger at her friend's words. "We're not leaving her behind!"

Adora's eyes narrowed defiantly as she looked up at Eve. "But Papa..."

"What do you think that Uncle Joxer would think of you if you left your own grandmother to fend for herself - or anybody else who needed help?" Eve asked, gazing at her friend steadily as she placed her hands on her hips. "Or do you think that you're better than everybody else now and you can just do whatever you want to do because you feel like it? Mom was right when she said that having great power can corrupt even the most well-intentioned person, y'know."

Tears slowly filled Adora's eyes and her bottom lip trembled briefly as she shook her head. Without a word, she turned around and ran after her grandmother as fast as her legs could carry her.

Eve looked down at Joxer's body and carelessly ran her hand over her wet cheeks as she and Behlem waited in silence for the two to return.

They came back a few minutes later, both of them looking exhausted as they approached. Without a word, Brigandu removed her cloak and offered it to Adora. "This might help," she said softly.

Adora nodded as she took it and looked down at her father. "Thank you."

"I'll be right back," Eve said and ran over to a small grove of trees to find some broken branches to make a makeshift stretcher. She came back after a brief search dragging two long but sturdy-looking branches behind her. Brigandu's cloak was tied to the branches and the two friends went over to put Joxer's body on the stretcher when Behlem cleared his throat loudly.

"What is it? We have to go home!" Adora said in an exasperated voice.

"I can help. I'm very strong!" he replied.

"We don't have time to play with...!" Adora's voice faded away when Behlem carefully picked Joxer up and gently placed him onto the makeshift stretcher then took the two ends in his clawed hands.

"Please... Let me help you." Behlem looked up at the three with pleading eyes.

Adora and Eve exchanged glances before Adora nodded, wiping her cheeks. "Okay."

"Lead on, mistress," Behlem said.

Adora nodded once and the three women slowly began walking down the path that led to town, Behlem carefully dragging the stretcher that carried Joxer's body behind him. As they walked, Adora reached out and hesitantly placed her arm around Brigandu's waist. The former goddess looked at her granddaughter with a surprised expression on her face before she carefully returned the gesture.

Eve placed her arm around her friend's shoulders and Adora turned to look at her. "I'm sorry for what I said."

"Don't be because I deserved it, Evie." Adora sighed and swallowed hard. "I just want to go home and see Mom and..." Her voice trailed away and they walked the rest of the way home in silence, trying not to look at the destruction lying all around them.

Later that day, everyone gathered in the middle of Gabrielle's shop, where Jett, Jace and Joxer's bodies were carefully laid out. Melody silently wept as she held her son in her arms while he cried bitterly. Pierre sat in a chair with a dazed expression on his handsome features as he stared down at his husband while Gaston held a brokenhearted Jezda in his arms. Hercules, Iolaus, White Dove and Autolycus sat on a large bench and gazed at the three brothers sadly, Hercules sighing heavily and shaking his head.

Brigandu sat a short distance away from the others, her eyes closing briefly before she looked down at the three men who would be given heroes' funerals that evening. Cyrene was sitting next to her, shaking her head in silent disbelief as she watched Eve try to comfort a devastated Adora even as she cried.

Gabrielle leaned against Xena as tears spilled down her face while she sobbed and kept asking over and over, "Why?" Xena closed her eyes as she embraced her friend, one tear slipping down her proud and beautiful face.

In the middle of the floor, Behlem looked at everybody with a puzzled expression on his face. "Mistress, why do you weep so?" he asked.

Startled by the question from the strange creature, Adora's head shot up. She wiped at her face and glared down at Behlem. "My father and uncles are dead, you idiot!" she snapped.

"I don't understand..."

"Look, you stupid creature from, from - wherever or whatever you come from! THEY'RE DEAD!" Adora shouted as she strode over to Behlem.

"They're not dead, mistress!" Behlem insisted. "They're only..."

"THEY'RE DEAD!"

"No, mistr...!" Behlem screamed when Adora suddenly snatched him up from the floor and shook him violently. "You're hurting me! Please!"

"I know dead when I see it, you, you thing!" Adora exclaimed as she continued shaking him.

"Please mistress, you're hurting me! They're alive..." Behlem screamed again when Xena reached out and snatched him from Adora's grip. He swallowed hard as his terrified gaze transferred from furious brown eyes to icy blue.

"What do you mean: they're not dead?" Xena sneered, her eyes narrowing as her face came within inches of the shaking gargoyle's face. "How do you know that?"

A pink tongue nervously flicked over lips that looked like highly polished granite and his mouth opened and closed a few times before Behlem was finally able to say, "They're not dead. The essence of who they are - their spirits... They're... frozen in time - is the best way to explain it..."

"They're frozen in time? They have no heartbeat and they're not breathing! They're dead!" Eve shouted, angrily swiping the tears from her face as she rose to her feet and walked over to stand next to Adora.

"No! They're not dead!" Behlem insisted.

Gabrielle raised her head and looked over at Brigandu. "Is he telling the truth or is this nothing but some kind of sick trick that the two of you have cooked up?" she demanded.

The former goddess returned Gabrielle's stare wearily. "It's possible that's what's happened to then, but I can't tell you for sure since I no longer have the capability to know one way or the other..." she admitted quietly.

There was a small pause before Gabrielle said, "I believe you." She then turned to look at Hercules. "Would Hades know if he's telling the truth?"

"I don't know. Whatever happened to Joxer and how it affected Jett and Jace was outside his 'jurisdiction,' as insane as that sounds," Hercules replied. "Besides, I hate to say this but I think he's a little too busy to tell us right now..."

"I understand." Gabrielle nodded once and turned her head sharply to gaze at the still-terrified creature. "Can you help them?"

Melody's eyes darted back and forth, watching the interplay between the others as her heart began beating wildly in her chest.

Behlem shook his head slowly. "I can't, but miss... Adora can."

Xena gave Behlem a good, hard shake, making him scream shrilly as she growled, "Then you little pipsqueak, you better tell Dorie exactly what you know right now before I permanently turn you into a flowerpot!"

Behlem gulped loudly and shivered at the ferocious expression on Xena's face. "She has to find their spirits and bring them back."

"That's crazy!" Autolycus exclaimed. "You're seriously telling us that whatever makes them whatever they are is..." He waved a hand in the air. "...wandering around someplace in limbo?"

The gargoyle nodded. "And mistr... Adora's their only hope of getting back."

Adora raised slowly her head and looked at everyone. "I have to try," she said in a soft yet determined voice.

Nobody made a move to stop her as she walked over to where the brothers were lying in state. They watched as she intertwined their hands and then knelt down next to Joxer. Her face twisted painfully as she silently concentrated and she began sweating profusely.

"NO, DORIE! IT'LL KILL HER!" Gabrielle exclaimed hysterically, but Xena held her back.

"Let her try, Gabrielle. Let her try. She's their only hope," Xena softly cautioned her friend.

Gabrielle stopped her struggling and watched, not realizing that she was holding her breath until she finally had to take in some air and she gasped loudly, taking in deep breaths.

Adora's eyes slowly opened and Eve licked her lips nervously when she saw that they had changed to that strange fiery orange glow like they had in the temple. She held her hand up to shield her eyes as a bright light flowed from Adora's hands down to her father's arm and spread across his body and to his brothers, eventually surrounding them.

Before it grew too bright and she and the others had to turn away, Eve saw Adora's mouth moving as if she was saying something, but no sound came from her lips. Shortly after that, the air grew very heavy. Everybody found it extremely difficult to breathe and they all could feel their temples pounding furiously. It seemed to last for a long, long time until Adora uttered a soft moan and collapsed atop Joxer's chest. The light surrounding them disappeared and the air slowly returned to normal.

Gabrielle blinked hard, her eyes readjusting to the light before she ran over to kneel next to Adora. "Are you all right?" she asked, tears re-filling her eyes as she took her daughter into her arms and looked down at her unmoving husband.

Adora nodded. "Yeah... Stomach aches an' I feel real dizzy... Feel kinda different too - like something's missing... Not just the connection between me and-" she mumbled before she looked down at her father and felt her eyes prickle with tears when she saw that there was no change with him, Jett and Jace. "It didn't work!" she exclaimed and she buried her head against Gabrielle's shoulder, sobbing softly.

"You tried, Dorie. You tried," Gabrielle whispered while she held Adora tightly.

"But it wasn't enough...!"

Xena's jaw muscles worked as she willed herself to keep her composure and she walked over to Eve and silently embraced her daughter as she cried. Andy hugged Melody fiercely as he sobbed in her arms while Pierre buried his face in his hands. Jezda shook her head, tears streaming down her face as Gaston held her. The others remained silent, not knowing what to do or say.

"G-G-Gabby?"

Gabrielle's eyes widened as she looked down at Joxer, who looked completely exhausted but still somehow managed to weakly smile at her. "JOXER!" She looked over at Jett and Jace and saw that they, like him, looked utterly worn-out, but it appeared that they were also going to be all right after taking some much-needed rest.

"Gabrielle? Wha' happened?" Joxer asked softly.

Gabrielle let out an inarticulate exclamation as she pulled Joxer into her arms and hugged him tightly. "Don't you ever do anything like that again, or I'll kill you!" she shouted.

"Okay..." Joxer wheezed as Adora, Xena and Eve joined them, all of them laughing joyfully as they group-hugged. From the corner of his eye, he saw Jace practically get tackled by Pierre and Jett was softly reassuring Melody that he was okay even as Andy sat on top of his stomach whooping at the top of his lungs. He briefly turned his head and saw Brigandu watching the reunion with a soft smile on her face. Thank you, he mouthed before he found his face getting turned in Gabrielle's direction and her lips going down on his in a fierce kiss.

While the others celebrated loudly, Gaston smiled as he embraced Jezda and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. "Our sons are going to be all right, ma chérie," he said.

Jett, who had somehow overheard the remark over all the commotion, turned his head in their direction, and to Gaston's astonishment and Jezda's delight, winked.


	31. Chapter 31

Part 31: Conclusion

Five months later:

"Tag! You're it!" A high-pitched giggle pierced the air as a hand reached down and touched a granite-colored shoulder.

"Not again! MISS... Adora! Help!" Behlem wailed as he began running after a laughing Andy, Lennox, Aimee and Sarah as fast as his little legs could carry him across the meadow.

"Sorry Behlem, but I can't help you this time! You've got to get out of this one yourself," Adora replied, laughing merrily while she watched the small gargoyle run after her cousins. She turned around when she felt someone tap her shoulder and her smile widened with pleasure when she saw it was Ioannes. "Hey..."

Ioannes pointed to where several people were gathering around to dance. "Wanna?" he asked curiously, offering his hand out to her.

Adora blushed and smiled shyly. "I'd like that," she admitted, taking his hand in hers. The two then walked over to where the others were gathered and they began dancing as the music started playing. From the corner of her eye, she saw Eve laughing at something Stephanos was saying and she smiled. Eve saw her smiling and she returned it before getting lost in the crowd. She then saw Gaston and Jezda dancing and her smile widened before she found herself getting giddily whirled around.

Joxer, Gabrielle and Xena relaxed as they sat on a long bench that was a short distance away from the dancing wedding guests. Joxer smiled when he spotted Jett fussing over a visibly pregnant Melody, who answered her anxious husband's questions patiently as they sat down at one of the tables.

A swatch of brightly colored clothing briefly caught Joxer's attention and he turned to see that Jace and Pierre were among the dancers. With another brief turn of his head, he saw Cyrene and Brigandu, who was slowly adjusting to mortal life and had refused all offers of being returned to her godhood from the Olympian gods for her efforts in attempting to stop the war between them and the gods from Gaul, laughing merrily while they watched Behlem still vainly trying to catch the children. He then looked down at his still-full wine cup and stared at the deep-red liquid.

"Something bothering you, Joxer?" Gabrielle asked, interrupting her husband's silent reverie. 

Joxer looked up then, smiling at his wife and best friend, who were both looking at him curiously. "No, I'm fine," he reassured them both. "Just thinking about stuff..."

"Like what?" Xena asked, a smirk gracing her lovely features. "It's not like you to be so - contemplative. That's Gabrielle's job," she added in teasingly and laughed when Gabrielle gave her a gentle whap on the arm.

"Nothing important... Just that some things never change..."

"Like the Gods causing trouble?" Gabrielle asked with a knowing grin.

"That's a given, Gabrielle," Xena chuckled before taking a sip from her wine cup. "It's been kind of nice that they've all been more or less not causing too much mischief these past few months, though..."

Joxer shook his head, frowning slightly. "Nah, that's not it..." His lips pursed up as he struggled with his thoughts for a few moments before turning his head to gaze at the two of them. "Like being with family and having great friends to share good and bad times with. That's all."

"Sometimes, Joxer, you still amaze me - even though I've known you for so long," Gabrielle said and she leaned over to kiss him briefly. Afterwards, she took her wine cup in her hand and raised it up, smiling. "A toast then: to family and friendship..."

"To family - and friendship," Xena and Joxer chorused, returning Gabrielle's smile. The three of them toasted then, cups clinking together before they each took a long drink of wine.

"So... What do you think happened to the rest of the Gods from Gaul?" Gabrielle asked, idly putting her arm over Joxer's shoulders as she watched the dancing. They all waved when they spotted Gaston and Jezda dancing happily and Jezda had just enough time to return it before Gaston twirled her around and began leading her in a different direction.

"I don't know Gabrielle, but wherever they are, let's hope they don't return for a long, long time," Xena said.

"That's for sure!" Gabrielle agreed fervently and the three friends toasted once more before leaning back in their seats and laughing as Behlem ran by them, still yelling for help as he tried to catch the children.

"Don't blame me for this! It was Teutales' plan - and you were stupid enough to agree that it was the best one!"

"Abnoba, you didn't exactly come up with a good alternative, did you?"

"It's not like yours was any better, Kai! Besides, may I add, everybody else was willing to go along with his ideas! I warned all of you that we never should've allowed Aer down there in the first place to try and turn the vessel to our side! She was too reckless and undisciplined to handle the task..."

"Enough of this bickering, you two!" Taranis interrupted. "Instead of using your mouths and wasting your energy, why not try using your brains and help us find a way out of here!"

His words were drowned out as another outbreak of arguing started up among the stranded Gods and Goddesses, each of them blaming each other for their misfortune, only to stop when they heard a low growling noise a short distance away from them. "All this time, stuck in this - limbo... You've got all of your powers, yet you can't even open up a simple vortex to get us out of here... VERY DISAPPOINTED!"

"Shut up, Hercules!" Kai sneered. "All brawn and no brains, you pathetic half-breed..." He shouted in surprise when he was suddenly grabbed by his tunic collar and lifted up so that his feet dangled several inches in the air. He stared down into a face that looked just like the Hercules that he had fought against during their clash with the Olympians, but with three crucial differences: this one had a beard, wore a metal-studded black leather vest, pants, and boots - and the brilliant blue eyes staring up at him were completely and utterly mad.

"I warned you... Never, ever call me that..." The blue eyes glittered maniacally as Kai found himself being thrown backwards, where he hit the barrier that held them all there. "I'M THE SOVEREIGN!" Hercules yelled, following that up by tossing a huge boulder at the God's direction.

Kai easily disintegrated the boulder by firing a bolt at it. As the pieces rained over everyone's heads, he rose to his feet, mockingly yelling, "Sovereign of what? Your deluded mind?"

"YAAAAAHHHH!" The Sovereign bellowed as he ran towards Kai to attack him, only to get slammed against the barrier when Kai shot a sizzling hot fireball directly into his chest. He made a quick recovery and instead of going after the Forge God, he went after Abnoba, who was not expecting him to attack, instead. Fireballs and insults flew through the air as the remaining Gods and Goddesses began attacking each other.

Taranis stood in the middle of it all, yelling, "STOP IT, YOU FOOLS! WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!" A bolt hit him directly in the chest right after he said that and he finally lost his rather tenuous control of his temper and he joined in the fray.

The fighting between them continued for a long, long time, but nobody seemed to notice or care.

FIN 


End file.
